Psalms 50:1-14

God the Judge of the Righteous and the Wicked.

1 ¹The Mighty One, God, the LORD, has spoken, And summoned the earth ²from the rising of the sun to its setting.

2 Out of Zion, ³the perfection of beauty, God ⁴has shone forth.

3 May our God ⁵come and not keep silence; ⁶Fire devours before Him, And it is very ⁷tempestuous around Him.

4 He ⁸summons the heavens above *, And the earth, to judge His people:

5 "Gather My ⁹godly ones to Me, Those who have made a ¹⁰covenant with Me by ¹¹sacrifice."

6 And the ¹²heavens declare His righteousness, For ¹³God Himself is judge. Selah.

7 "¹⁴Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you; I am God, ¹⁵your God.

8 "I do ¹⁶not reprove you for your sacrifices, And your burnt offerings are continually before Me.

9 "I shall take no ¹⁷young bull out of your house Nor male goats out of your folds.

10 "For ¹⁸every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills.

11 "I know every ¹⁹bird of the mountains, And everything that moves in the field is Mine.

12 "If I were hungry I would not tell you, For the ²⁰world is Mine, and all it contains.

13 "Shall I eat the flesh of ²¹bulls Or drink the blood of male goats?

14 "Offer to God ²²a sacrifice of thanksgiving And ²³pay your vows to the Most High;

Psalms 50:1-14 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 50

\\<>\\. This psalm is called a psalm of Asaph; either because it was composed by him under divine inspiration, since he was a prophet and a seer, 1Ch 25:2, 2Ch 29:30; or because it was delivered to him to be sung in public service, he being a chief musician; see 1Ch 16:7; and so it may be rendered, "a psalm for Asaph"; or "unto Asaph" {o}; which was directed, sent, and delivered to him, and might be written by David; and, as Junius thinks, after the angel had appeared to him, and he was directed where he should build an altar to the Lord, 1Ch 21:18. The Targum, Kimchi, and R. Obadiah Gaon, interpret this psalm of the day of judgment; and Jarchi takes it to be a prophecy of the future redemption by their expected Messiah; and indeed it does refer to the times of the Gospel dispensation; for it treats of the calling of the Gentiles, of the abrogation of legal sacrifices, and of the controversy the Lord would have with the Jews for retaining them, and rejecting pure, spiritual, and evangelical worship. {o} Poal "ipsi Asaph", Tigurine version, Vatablus; "Asapho", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; so Ainsworth.

Cross References

• 1. Joshua 22:22
• 2. Psalms 113:3
• 3. Psalms 48:2; Lamentations 2:15
• 4. Deuteronomy 33:2; Psalms 80:1; Psalms 94:1
• 5. Psalms 96:13
• 6. Leviticus 10:2; Numbers 16:35; Psalms 97:3; Daniel 7:10
• 7. Psalms 18:12, 13
• 8. Deuteronomy 4:26; Deuteronomy 31:28; Deuteronomy 32:1; Isaiah 1:2
• 9. Psalms 30:4; Psalms 37:28; Psalms 52:9
• 10. Exodus 24:7; 2 Chronicles 6:11; Psalms 25:10
• 11. Psalms 50:8
• 12. Psalms 89:5; Psalms 97:6
• 13. Psalms 75:7; Psalms 96:13
• 14. Psalms 49:1; Psalms 81:8
• 15. Exodus 20:2; Psalms 48:14
• 16. Psalms 40:6; Psalms 51:16; Isaiah 1:11; Hosea 6:6
• 17. Psalms 69:31
• 18. Psalms 104:24
• 19. Matthew 6:26
• 20. Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 10:14; Psalms 24:1; 1 Corinthians 10:26
• 21. Psalms 50:9
• 22. Psalms 27:6; Psalms 69:30; Psalms 107:22; Psalms 116:17; Hosea 14:2; Romans 12:1; Hebrews 13:15
• 23. Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21; Psalms 22:25; Psalms 56:12; Psalms 61:8; Psalms 65:1; Psalms 76:11

Footnotes

• [a]. "Selah" may mean: "Pause, Crescendo" or "Musical interlude"
• [b]. Or "to"
• [c]. Or "in My mind;" lit "with Me"
• [d]. Lit "its fullness"
• [e]. Lit "strong ones"