Psalms 16:1-8

1 Preserve me, O God; For in thee do I take refuge.

2 [O my soul], thou hast said unto Jehovah, Thou art my Lord: I have no good beyond thee.

3 As for the saints that are in the earth, They are the excellent in whom is all my delight.

4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that give gifts for another [god]: Their drink-offerings of blood will I not offer, Nor take their names upon my lips.

5 Jehovah is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: Thou maintainest my lot.

6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; Yea, I have a goodly heritage.

7 I will bless Jehovah, who hath given me counsel; Yea, my heart instructeth me in the night seasons.

8 I have set Jehovah always before me: Because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Psalms 16:1-8 Meaning and Commentary

Michtam of David. This is a new title, not met with before, though it afterwards is prefixed to "five" psalms running, the fifty sixth, the fifty seventh, the fifty eighth, the fifty ninth, and the sixtieth psalms. Some take the word "michtam" to be the name of a musical instrument, as Kimchi on Psalm 4:1; others the name of one of the tunes, as Jarchi; and others the tune of a song which began with this word, as Aben Ezra observes, to which this psalm was sung; the Septuagint translate it "stelography," or an inscription upon a pillar; such an one as is erected by conquerors, as Theodoret observes, having writing on it declaring the victory obtained; suggesting that the psalm, or the subject of it, the death and resurrection of Christ, was worthy to be inscribed on a pillar of marble; and the Targum renders it, "a right engraving," that deserves to be engraven in a monument of brass: but what seems to be the best sense of the word is, that it signifies a work of gold, and may be rendered, "a golden [psalm] of David"; so called, either because it was a dear and favourite song of his; or from the subject matter, which is more valuable and precious than the most fine gold: the title of it in the Syriac and Arabic versions is, "concerning the election of the church, and the resurrection of Christ;" and certain it is from Psalm 16:10, the resurrection of Christ is spoken of in it, as is clear from the testimonies of two apostles, Peter and Paul, who cite it in proof of it, Acts 2:25; and since there is but one person speaking throughout the psalm, and Christ is he that speaks in Psalm 16:10, and which cannot be understood of David, nor of any other person but Christ, the whole of the psalm must be interpreted of him.