<<  PSALM XXVII.  >>

A Psalm of David.

1. Jehovah is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
Jehovah is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid ?
2. When evil-doers came upon me to eat up my flesh,
Even mine adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and
fell.
3. Though a host should encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear:
Though war should rise against me,
Even then will I be confident.
4. One thing have I asked of Jehovah, that will I seek
after:
That I may dwell in the house of Jehovah all the days
of my life,
To behold the beauty of Jehovah,
And to inquire in his temple.
5. For in the day of trouble he will keep me secretly in
his pavilion:
In the covert of his tabernacle will he hide me;
He will lift me up upon a rock. -
6. And now shall my head be lifted up above mine enemies
round about me;
And I will offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto Jehovah.
7. Hear, O Jehovah, when I cry with my voice:
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto
thee,
Thy face, Jehovah, will I seek.
9. Hide not thy face from me;
Put not thy servant away in anger:
Thou hast been my help;
Cast me not off, neither forsake me, O God of my
salvation.
10. When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then Jehovah will take me up.
11. Teach me thy way, O Jehovah;
And lead me in a plain path,
Because of mine enemies.
12. Deliver me not over unto the will of mine adversaries:
For false witnesses are risen up against me,
And such as breathe out cruelty.
13.I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness
of Jehovah
In the land of the living.
14. Wait for Jehovah:
Be strong, and let thy heart take courage;
Yea, wait thou for Jehovah.

 

1. Jehovah is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
Jehovah is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid ?
2. When evil-doers came upon me to eat up my flesh,
Even mine adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and
fell.
3. Though a host should encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear:
Though war should rise against me,
Even then will I be confident.

1-3. What the Lord says to the Father: He does not fear the hells which fight against Him. P. P.

3. The camp of the saints — Revelation xx. 9 — stands for the heaven, or kingdom of the Lord on earth, which is the church. As most things in the Word have also an opposite sense so likewise has a camp, which then signifies evils and falsities, and accordingly hell. A. 4236.
By wars in the Word spiritual wars are signified. R. 500.

By an army in the Word the truths and goods of the church, and also its falsities and evils are signified, hence also by a camp. R. 862.

4. See Psalm xxiii. 6. A. 3384.
See Psalm xxiii. 6. E. 220.
See Psalm xxiii. 6. E. 662.

4, 5. See Psalm xv. 1, 2. R. 585.

4. One thing have I asked of Jehovah, that will I seek
after:
That I may dwell in the house of Jehovah all the days
of my life,
To behold the beauty of Jehovah,
And to inquire in his temple.
5. For in the day of trouble he will keep me secretly in
his pavilion:
In the covert of his tabernacle will he hide me;
He will lift me up upon a rock. -
6. And now shall my head be lifted up above mine enemies
round about me;
And I will offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto Jehovah.

Here mention is made of the house of Jehovah, a temple, a tent, and a tabernacle. By the house of Jehovah is signified the church which is in the good of love to the Lord, by temple the church which is in truths from that good, by the tent of Jehovah is signified Divine truth, and by the tabernacle Divine good. Hence it is evident that by dwelling in the house of Jehovah all the days of the life, is not meant to dwell in the house of Jehovah, but in the good of love to the Lord. By visiting in the morning the temple of Jehovah is meant to inquire into and learn the truths of that good. By hiding in the tent is signified to hold in Divine truth and to protect from falses. By concealing in the secret of the tabernacle is signified to hold the Divine good and to protect from evils. By exalting upon a rock is signified to instruct in interior truths. E. 799.

4-6. In the highest sense the Lord as to His Human Essence is the tent, the tabernacle, and the temple. A. 414.

4-10, 13, 14. His union with the Father. P. P.

6. By a tent is expressed what is celestial, by shouting, singing, and singing praises, what is spiritual therefrom. A. 420.

8. See Psalm iv. 7. A. 10579.
See Psalm iv. 7. R. 939.
See Psalm iv. 7. E. 412.

8. 9. See Psalm xiii. 2. A. 5585.
See Psalm xvii. 15. . A. 5585.

7. Hear, O Jehovah, when I cry with my voice:
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto
thee,
Thy face, Jehovah, will I seek.
9. Hide not thy face from me;
Put not thy servant away in anger:
Thou hast been my help;
Cast me not off, neither forsake me, O God of my
salvation.

By seeing the face of the Lord is not meant to see His face, but to know and acknowledge Him as He is with regard to His Divine attributes which are many. They who are conjoined with Him by love know Him and thus see His face. R. 939.

The interior things of the church, of the Word, and of worship are signified by seeing, seeking, and beseeching the face of Jehovah. E. 412.

9. Since the Lord as to Divine truth is understood by David, therefore by servant in all such passages is understood in the spiritual sense one who is subservient. David frequently calls himself the servant of Jehovah. E. 409.

10. When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then Jehovah will take me up.
11. Teach me thy way, O Jehovah;
And lead me in a plain path,
Because of mine enemies.
12. Deliver me not over unto the will of mine adversaries:
For false witnesses are risen up against me,
And such as breathe out cruelty.

10. Father and mother stand for good and truth, which are said to have forsaken when man observes that of himself he is not able to do anything good, or to know anything true. A. 3703.

11, 12. Whereby He will subjugate the hells. P. P.
12. "Deliver me not to the soul of my enemies" the soul signifies the life of the spirit of the man. E. 750.

12, 13. See Psalm iii. 2, 3. A. 10481.

See Psalm iii. 2, 3. E. 671.

13. There can be only one life, from which is the life of all, and there can be no life — which is life — except through faith in the Lord, who is life, nor can there be faith in which is life except from Him, thus in which He is.
A. 290.

13. I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness
of Jehovah
In the land of the living.
14. Wait for Jehovah:
Be strong, and let thy heart take courage;
Yea, wait thou for Jehovah.

Here and in other passages lives are spoken of in the plural, because there are two faculties in man, one which is called understanding and is of truth, and the other which is called will and is of good. These two lives or faculties of life make one when the understanding is of the will, or what is the same when truth is of good. A. 3623.
Making alive, quickening, and life manifestly mean spiritual life, or life in heaven, which is also simply called life. A. 5890.

The reason why the church is signified by the earth is, because by earth or land the land of Canaan is often meant, in which was the church, the heavenly Canaan is nothing else. R. 285.

Heaven is called the land of the living. E. 186.Since the earth signifies the church, and where the earth is there is heaven, it is therefore called the earth or land of the living, and the land of life. See also Isaiah xxxviii. 11, and Ezekiel xxxii. 23-27. E. 304

Author: EMANUEL SWEDENBORG (1688-1772)