All [they that be] fat upon earth
Rich men, who abound in worldly substance, are in very
flourishing and prosperous circumstances, of whom for the most
part this is literally true; yea, by these sometimes are meant
princes, rulers, the chief among the people in power and
authority, as well as in riches; see ( Psalms 78:31
) ( Isaiah
10:16 ) ; the phrase may design such who are in prosperous
circumstances in their souls, in spiritual things, in faith,
comfort, and spiritual joy, ( Psalms 92:14
) ; but the former sense is best: Jarchi inverts the words, "they
shall eat", that is, the meek shall eat, "all the fat of the
earth, and worship"; which may be understood of the spiritual
blessings of grace, which converted persons shall feed and live
upon, ( Psalms
63:5 ) ; the allusion may be to the fat parts of the earth,
and what grows thereon, made so by ashes, which the word used has
the signification of; for some lands are fattened by ashes being
strewed upon them F16; but rather the rich and great men
of the earth are intended, who yet are but dust and ashes. They
shall eat, and worship;
for as, in the first times of the Gospel, not many mighty and
noble were called, yet some were; so more especially, in the
latter day, many of this sort will be called, even kings and
queens; who will not live upon their titles of honour, their
grandeur and glory, but upon Christ and his Gospel, and will fall
down before him, and serve and worship him; see ( Psalms 72:10
Psalms
72:11 ) ( Isaiah 49:7 Isaiah 49:23
) ( Isaiah
9:3 Isaiah
9:16 ) ;
all they that go down to the dust shall bow before
him;
such as are in mean circumstances of life; so that both rich and
poor shall serve him; or who are mean in their own eyes, sit in
the dust of self-abhorrence, and put their mouths in the dust,
are in a low condition, out of which the Lord raises them, (
Psalms
113:7 Psalms 113:8
) . The Targum paraphrases it, "who go down to the house of the
grave"; that is, the dead; and then the sense is, that Christ is
the Lord, both of the dead and living, and that those that are
under the earth, and are reduced to dust, as well as they that
live and are fat upon it, shall bow the knee to Christ, when
raised again, who is the Judge of quick and dead; see ( Romans 14:9 ) (
Philippians 2:10
Philippians 2:11 ) ;
and none can keep alive his own soul;
as no man can quicken himself when dead in trespasses and sins;
so when he is made alive, he cannot preserve his life, nor
nourish himself, nor make himself lively and comfortable, nor
cause his heart to live, as in ( Psalms 22:26
) ; but by eating the flesh, and drinking the blood of Christ,
feeding and living upon him by faith: though some take the sense
to be, that such as are before described as converted persons,
will not seek to save their lives, but will freely lay them down
and part with them for Christ's sake; but rather the meaning is,
that so universal will the kingdom of Christ be, as that high and
low, rich and poor, will be bowing to him; whoever are his
enemies, and will not have him to rule over them, will be brought
before him and slain, and none of them will be able to save
themselves; so the Targum, "he will not quicken", or "keep alive,
the soul of the wicked"; or as Jarchi interprets it,
``he will have no mercy on them, to keep their souls alive from hell.''
F16 "Effoetos cinerem immundum jactare per agros", Virgil. Georgic. l. 1. v. 79.