Psalm 108 A Song. A Psalm of David.

 ¹O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing and give praise,

even with my glory.

²Awake, lute and harp!

I will awaken the dawn.

³I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples,

And I will sing praises to You among the nations.

⁴For Your mercy is great above the heavens,

And Your truth reaches to the clouds.

⁵Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,

And Your glory above all the earth;

⁶That Your beloved may be delivered,

Save with Your right hand, and hear me.

⁷God has spoken in His holiness:

“I will rejoice;

I will divide Shechem

And measure out the Valley of Succoth.

⁸Gilead is Mine;

Manasseh is Mine;

Ephraim also is the helmet for My head;

Judah is My lawgiver.

⁹Moab is My washpot;

Over Edom I will cast My shoe;

Over Philistia I will triumph.”

¹⁰Who will bring me into the strong city?

Who will lead me to Edom?

¹¹Is it not You, O God, who cast us off?

And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies?

¹²Give us help from trouble,

For the help of man is useless.

¹³Through God we will do valiantly,

For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.

Commentary

Vs. 1 “O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing and give praise,

even with my glory.”

This Psalm opens with a strong conviction of faith. Of declaring one’s absolute steadfast faith in our God. Because of that there is the great desire inside of us to praise Him, with all of our glory; that is with all of the God given abilities, talents and intellect that we have. For worshiping our God is not a mute or half-hearted thing, it encompasses our whole person.

Vs. 2 “Awake, lute and harp!

I will awaken the dawn.”

Not only was David a gifted singer, but he was a skilled musician; therefore, he now looks at his instruments of worship sitting idle and commands them to awake! For by them he will now awaken the dawn! That said peoples you don’t need to be a musician to worship the Lord our God, all you need is a heart of praise and He will accept all your worship of Him! Indeed, He will teach you and grow you in it when you commit yourselves to Him.

Vs. 3 “I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples,

And I will sing praises to You among the nations.”

David was not content to just praise the Lord at home, or in the assembly, but he wanted His praise to be heard everywhere, and in every nation. This then is the passion and desire of every faith filled worshipper of our God.

Vs. 4 “For Your mercy is great above the heavens,

And Your truth reaches to the clouds.”

The reason for David’s great desire to praise is now proclaimed, for our God’s mercy is great above the heavens, far above the accuser of our souls, God’s mercy can never be brought down by him or anyone else, since it originates with Him and resides with Him forever. Those of us then who have it from Him will reside forever with Him by it as well. As for His truth it alone reaches to the clouds, spanning both heaven and earth, for there is no place where it does not reside and abide and exercise His dominion and reign over all of His creation as well!

Vs. 5-6 “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,

And Your glory above all the earth;

⁶That Your beloved may be delivered,

Save with Your right hand, and hear me.

And as for our God He is exalted above the heavens and His glory is above all the earth. This then begins David’s prayer to Him, that he might be delivered by Him, that the Lord our God through His chosen servants would reveal this truth to one and to all by delivering us from them all, whether on earth or in heaven, that every principality and power would know that God in His Sovereignty reigns, that He alone raises up one and puts down another.

Vs. 7-9 ⁷God has spoken in His holiness:

“I will rejoice;

I will divide Shechem

And measure out the Valley of Succoth.

⁸Gilead is Mine;

Manasseh is Mine;

Ephraim also is the helmet for My head;

Judah is My lawgiver.

⁹Moab is My washpot;

Over Edom I will cast My shoe;

Over Philistia I will triumph.”

Because of David’s passionate intercession for himself and the nation, God Himself now speaks in His holiness on their behalf, saying:

“I will rejoice;

I will divide Shechem

And measure out the Valley of Succoth.

⁸Gilead is Mine;

Manasseh is Mine;

Ephraim also is the helmet for My head;

Judah is My lawgiver.

⁹Moab is My washpot;

Over Edom I will cast My shoe;

Over Philistia I will triumph.”

God Himself then will take up their cause, and in this He will rejoice as He divides Shechem, the place where Jacobs well is, where Joshua and the nation made their covenant with God to serve Him alone (Joshua 24:1). But later became the habitation of wicked and godless people, God now will restore it to Israel. Similarly, is the valley of Succoth, the place where Jacob first resided and built his home after fleeing from Laban and leaving his brother Esau forever. These lands then will be restored to Israel forever. As for land of Gilead renowned for its beautiful pasture lands Lord our God fully claims it as His; just as He does Manasseh, which encompassed both sides of the Jorden; but often became occupied by Gentile peoples; the Lord retakes this for Himself as well. The tribe of Ephraim then will be His helmet in this, leading the tribes of Israel onto their victory, while the tribe of Judah will be His lawgiver; that is Israel’s governance will come through it, per His Promised Word (Gen. 49:19).

Three hostile Gentile nations are now mentioned. First is Moab, the descendants of Lot, who became a people and nation, who opposed Moses and the Israelites when they came out of the wilderness. Later they often acted as thorns in their side, (like when they hired Balaam against them), these then are held in very low regard by the Lord our God, who now says that He will make them His washpot. Next mentioned is Edom, the nation that came through Esau, Jacobs rebellious brother, these people also withstood Israel in their distress when they asked to pass peaceably through their land. Later on, they made frequent troubles for Israel when they got established in the land, often siding with their enemies, even openly mocking and looting Israel in their troubles. Over these godless people then God Himself will now cast His shoe, meaning they will never raise themselves up, nor mock Israel ever again (see Obadiah). The third Gentile nation is Philistia, this nation which made more wars and troubles for ancient Israel than any other will now know complete and utter defeat by hand of the Lord our God who will triumph over them all.

Vs. 10-13 ¹⁰Who will bring me into the strong city?

Who will lead me to Edom?

¹¹Is it not You, O God, who cast us off?

And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies?

¹²Give us help from trouble,

For the help of man is useless.

¹³Through God we will do valiantly,

For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.

God’s assured judgement on Edom now hastens David’s spirit to the battle (vs. 10). Nonetheless he knows that this will not be the work of man. God Himself must lead the armies of Israel for they to be successful. And right now, David only sees his armies defeat, as the Lord our God has left them to their own devices (vs. 11). Therefore, he now prays for the Lord God’s intercession on their behalf, for as he has learned the help of man is useless (vs. 12). And understanding this truth is foundational for both us His people, and Israel His nation, to receive His help in our own troubles and needs. For sadly Israel throughout their history too often has looked to the Gentile nations for their deliverance and help only to be betrayed, or let down by them in the end. Therefore, with his eyes firmly fixed and set on the Lord David now resounding with assurance of victory, now says,

“Through God we will do valiantly,

For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” Amen.

No this then brethren when the cause is just and the fight is of the Lord we will win.

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.