Psalm 18:16
Read Psalm 18:16 Using Other Translations
What does Psalm 18:16 mean?
He sent from above
Either his hand, as in ( Psalms 144:7
) ; he exerted and displayed his mighty power in raising Christ
from the dead; or he sent help from his sanctuary; as in (
Psalms 20:2 )
; and helped and strengthened him in a day of salvation; or when
he wrought out the salvation of his people; or "he sent his
word", as in ( Psalms
107:20 ) ; his word of command, to take up his life again, as
he had given it to lay it down, ( John 10:18 ) . The
Targum is, he sent his prophets; but it may be much better
supplied, he sent his angels, or an angel; as he did at his
resurrection, who rolled away the stone from the sepulchre, as a
token of his justification and discharge: so Jarchi interprets
it, he sent his angels; and Aben Ezra supplies it thus,
``he sent his word or his angel:''unless the sense should be, as Cocceius suggests, he sent a cloud from above, which was done at Christ's ascension, and which received him out of the sight of the apostles, ( Acts 1:9 ) . Since it follows,
he took me;
that is, up to heaven; thither Christ was carried in a cloud, one
of God's chariots, he sent for him; and where he is received, and
will be retained until his second coming; though rather the sense
is, he took me by the hand:
he drew me out of many waters.
This is said either in allusion to Moses, who had his name from
his being drawn out of the water, ( Exodus 2:10 ) ; and who
was an eminent type of Christ; and this is the only place where
the Hebrew word is made use of from whence he had his name; or
else to a man plunged in water ready to be drowned; see (
Psalms 69:1
Psalms 69:2 )
. By these "many waters" may be meant the many afflictions,
sorrows, and sufferings from which Christ was freed, when raised
from the dead, and highly exalted and crowned with glory and
honour; and the torrent of sins which flowed in upon him at the
time he was made sin for his people, from which he was justified
when risen; and so will appear a second time without sin unto
salvation; and the wrath of God, the waves and billows of which
went over him, and compassed him about as water, at the time of
his sufferings; from which he was delivered when he was shown the
path of life, and entered into the presence of God, and sat at
his right hand, where are joys and pleasures for evermore; and
also his grand enemy Satan, with his principalities and powers,
who came in like a flood upon him; but he destroyed him and
spoiled them; and particularly the floods of ungodly men, spoken
of in ( Psalms
18:4 ) ; seem to be here designed; compare with this (
Psalms
144:7 ) ; "so many waters" signify many people and nations, (
Revelation 17:15 ) ;
and accordingly the Targum is,
``he delivered me from many people.''This was true of Christ when risen and ascended; he was then separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; and this sense is confirmed by the following words, where what is expressed figuratively here is there literally explained.
