Salmi 31

1 Per il Capo de’ musici. Salmo di Davide. O Eterno, io mi son confidato in te, fa’ ch’io non sia giammai confuso; liberami per la tua giustizia.

2 Inclina a me il tuo orecchio; affrettati a liberarmi; siimi una forte ròcca, una fortezza ove tu mi salvi.

3 Poiché tu sei la mia ròcca e la mia fortezza; per amor del tuo nome guidami e conducimi.

4 Trammi dalla rete che m’han tesa di nascosto; poiché tu sei il mio baluardo.

5 Io rimetto il mio spirito nelle tue mani; tu m’hai riscattato, o Eterno, Dio di verità.

6 Io odio quelli che attendono alle vanità menzognere; e quanto a me confido nell’Eterno.

7 Io festeggerò e mi rallegrerò per la tua benignità; poiché tu hai veduta la mia afflizione, hai preso conoscenza delle distrette dell’anima mia,

8 e non m’hai dato in man del nemico; tu m’hai messo i piedi al largo.

9 Abbi pietà di me, o Eterno, perché sono in distretta; l’occhio mio, l’anima mia, le mie viscere son rosi dal cordoglio.

10 Poiché la mia vita vien meno dal dolore e i miei anni per il sospirare; la forza m’è venuta a mancare per la mia afflizione, e le mie ossa si consumano.

11 A cagione di tutti i miei nemici son diventato un obbrobrio, un grande obbrobrio ai miei vicini, e uno spavento ai miei conoscenti. Quelli che mi veggono fuori fuggon lungi da me.

12 Io son del tutto dimenticato come un morto; son simile a un vaso rotto.

13 Perché odo il diffamare di molti, spavento m’è d’ogn’intorno, mentr’essi si consigliano a mio danno, e macchinano di tormi la vita.

14 Ma io mi confido in te, o Eterno; io ho detto: Tu sei l’Iddio mio.

15 I miei giorni sono in tua mano; liberami dalla mano de’ miei nemici e dai miei persecutori.

16 Fa’ risplendere il tuo volto sul tuo servitore; salvami per la tua benignità.

17 O Eterno, fa’ ch’io non sia confuso, perché io t’invoco; siano confusi gli empi, sian ridotti al silenzio nel soggiorno de’ morti.

18 Ammutoliscano le labbra bugiarde che parlano arrogantemente contro al giusto con alterigia e con disprezzo.

19 Quant’è grande la bontà che tu riserbi a quelli che ti temono, e di cui dài prova in presenza de’ figliuoli degli uomini, verso quelli che si confidano in te!

20 Tu li nascondi all’ombra della tua presenza, lungi dalle macchinazioni degli uomini; tu li occulti in una tenda, lungi dagli attacchi delle lingue.

21 Sia benedetto l’Eterno! poich’egli ha reso mirabile la sua benignità per me, ponendomi come in una città fortificata.

22 Quanto a me, nel mio smarrimento, dicevo: Io son reietto dalla tua presenza; ma tu hai udita la voce delle mie supplicazioni, quand’ho gridato a te.

23 Amate l’Eterno, voi tutti i suoi santi! L’Eterno preserva i fedeli, e rende ampia retribuzione a chi procede alteramente.

24 Siate saldi, e il vostro cuore si fortifichi, o voi tutti che sperate nell’Eterno!

Salmi 31 Commentary

Chapter 31

Confidence in God. (1-8) Prayer in trouble. (9-18) Praise for God's goodness. (19-24)

Verses 1-8 Faith and prayer must go together, for the prayer of faith is the prevailing prayer. David gave up his soul in a special manner to God. And with the words, ver. 5, our Lord Jesus yielded up his last breath on the cross, and made his soul a free-will offering for sin, laying down his life as a ransom. But David is here as a man in distress and trouble. And his great care is about his soul, his spirit, his better part. Many think that while perplexed about their worldly affairs, and their cares multiply, they may be excused if they neglect their souls; but we are the more concerned to look to our souls, that, though the outward man perish, the inward man may suffer no damage. The redemption of the soul is so precious, that it must have ceased for ever, if Christ had not undertaken it. Having relied on God's mercy, he will be glad and rejoice in it. God looks upon our souls, when we are in trouble, to see whether they are humbled for sin, and made better by the affliction. Every believer will meet with such dangers and deliverances, until he is delivered from death, his last enemy.

Verses 9-18 David's troubles made him a man of sorrows. Herein he was a type of Christ, who was acquainted with grief. David acknowledged that his afflictions were merited by his own sins, but Christ suffered for ours. David's friends durst not give him any assistance. Let us not think it strange if thus deserted, but make sure of a Friend in heaven who will not fail. God will be sure to order and dispose all for the best, to all those who commit their spirits also into his hand. The time of life is in God's hands, to lengthen or shorten, make bitter or sweet, according to the counsel of his will. The way of man is not in himself, nor in our friend's hands, nor in our enemies' hands, but in God's. In this faith and confidence he prays that the Lord would save him for his mercies's sake, and not for any merit of his own. He prophesies the silencing of those that reproach and speak evil of the people of God. There is a day coming, when the Lord will execute judgment upon them. In the mean time, we should engage ourselves by well-doing, if possible, to silence the ignorance of foolish men.

Verses 19-24 Instead of yielding to impatience or despondency under our troubles, we should turn our thoughts to the goodness of the Lord towards those who fear and trust in Him. All comes to sinners through the wondrous gift of the only-begotten Son of God, to be the atonement for their sins. Let not any yield to unbelief, or think, under discouraging circumstances, that they are cut off from before the eyes of the Lord, and left to the pride of men. Lord, pardon our complaints and fears; increase our faith, patience, love, and gratitude; teach us to rejoice in tribulation and in hope. The deliverance of Christ, with the destruction of his enemies, ought to strengthen and comfort the hearts of believers under all their afflictions here below, that having suffered courageously with their Master, they may triumphantly enter into his joy and glory.

Chapter Summary

To the chief Musician, a Psalm of David. This psalm, according to Arama, was composed by David when in Keilah; but, according to Kimchi and others, when the Ziphites proposed to deliver him up into the hands of Saul; and who, upon their solicitations, came down and surrounded him with his army, from whom in haste he made his escape, and to which he is thought to refer in Psalm 31:22. Theodoret supposes it was written by David when he fled from Absalom, and that it has some respect in it to his sin against Uriah, in that verse.