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Selected Verse: Psalms 21:3 - King James
Verse |
Translation |
Text |
Ps 21:3 |
King James |
For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness: thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head. |
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] |
preventest--literally, "to meet here in good sense," or "friendship" (Psa 59:10; compare opposite, Psa 17:13).
blessings of goodness--which confer happiness.
crown of pure gold--a figure for the highest royal prosperity. |
Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834] |
For thou preventest him - Thou goest before him; thou dost anticipate him. See Psa 17:13, margin. Our word "prevent" is now most commonly used in the sense of "hinder, stop, or intercept." This is not the original meaning of the English word; and the word is never used in this sense in the Bible. The English word, when our translation was made, meant to "go before," to "anticipate," and this is the uniform meaning of it in our English version, as it is the meaning of the original. See the notes at Job 3:12. Compare Psa 59:10; Psa 79:8; Psa 88:13; Psa 95:2; Psa 119:147-148; Amo 9:10; see the notes at Th1 4:15. The meaning here is, that God had "anticipated" him, or his desires. He had gone before him. He had designed the blessing even before it was asked.
With the blessings of goodness - Blessings "indicating" goodness on his part; blessings adapted to promote the "good" or the welfare of him on whom they were bestowed. Perhaps the meaning here is, not only that they were "good," but they "seemed" to be good; they were not "blessings in disguise," or blessings as the result of previous calamity and trial, but blessings where there was no trial - no shadow - no appearance of disappointment.
Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head - This does not refer to the time of his coronation, or the period when he was crowned a king, but it refers to the victory which he had achieved, and by which he had been made truly a king. He was crowned with triumph; he was shown to be a king; the victory was like making him a king, or setting a crown of pure gold upon his head. He was now a conqueror, and was indeed a king. |
Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78] |
(Heb.: 21:4-5) "Blessings of good" (Pro 24:25) are those which consist of good, i.e., true good fortune. The verb קדּם, because used of the favour which meets and presents one with some blessing, is construed with a double accusative, after the manner of verbs of putting on and bestowing (Ges. ֗139). Since Psa 21:4 cannot be intended to refer to David's first coronation, but to the preservation and increase of the honour of his kingship, this particularisation of Psa 21:4 sounds like a prediction of what is recorded in Sa2 22:30 : after the conquest of the Ammonitish royal city Rabbah David set the Ammonitish crown (עטרת), which is renowned for the weight of its gold and its ornamentation with precious stones, upon his head. David was then advanced in years, and in consequence of heavy guilt, which, however, he had overcome by penitence and laying hold on the mercy of God, was come to the brink of the grave. He, worthy of death, still lived; and the victory over the Syro-Ammonitish power was a pledge to him of God's faithfulness in fulfilling his promises. It is contrary to the tenour of the words to say that Psa 21:5 does not refer to length of life, but to hereditary succession to the throne. To wish any one that he may live לעולם, and especially a king, is a usual thing, Kg1 1:31, and frequently. The meaning is, may the life of the king be prolonged to an indefinitely distant day. What the people have desired elsewhere, they here acknowledge as bestowed upon the king. |
Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65] |
Prevent - Crowning him with manifold blessings, both more and sooner than he expected. With - With excellent blessings. |
Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
Thou preventest him - To prevent, from prcevenio, literally signifies to go before. Hence that prayer in the communion service of our public Liturgy, "Prevent us, O Lord, in all our doings, with thy most gracious favor!" That is, "Go before us in thy mercy, make our way plain, and enable us to perform what is right in thy sight!" And this sense of prevent is a literal version of the original word תקדמנו tekademennu. "For thou shalt go before him with the blessings of goodness."
Our ancestors used God before in this sense. So in Henry V.'s speech to the French herald previously to the battle of Agincourt: -
"Go therefore; tell thy master, here I am.
My ransom is this frail and worthless trunk;
My army, but a weak and sickly guard:
Yet, God before, tell him we will come on,
Though France himself, and such another neighbor,
Stand in our way."
A crown of pure gold - Probably alluding to the crown of the king of Rabbah, which, on the taking of the city, David took and put on his own head. See the history, Sa2 12:26-30 (note). |
13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:
10 The God of my mercy shall prevent me: God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.
147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.
148 Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
8 O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low.
10 The God of my mercy shall prevent me: God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.
12 Why did the knees prevent me? or why the breasts that I should suck?
13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:
31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.
5 His glory is great in thy salvation: honour and majesty hast thou laid upon him.
30 For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
4 He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever.
4 He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever.
25 But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them.
26 And Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the royal city.
27 And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, I have fought against Rabbah, and have taken the city of waters.
28 Now therefore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it: lest I take the city, and it be called after my name.
29 And David gathered all the people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it.
30 And he took their king's crown from off his head, the weight whereof was a talent of gold with the precious stones: and it was set on David's head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city in great abundance.