Psalms 116:1

1 I love the Lord, because he hears me; he listens to my prayers.

Psalms 116:1 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 116:1

I love the Lord
As the Messiah, David's antitype, did; of which he gave the fullest proof by his obedience to his will; and as David, the man after God's own heart, did, and as every good man does; and the Lord is to be loved for the perfections of his nature, and especially as they are displayed in Christ, and salvation by him; and for his works of creation, providence, and grace, and particularly for his great love shown in redemption, regeneration, and other blessings of grace, as well as for what follows.

Because he hath heard my voice and my supplication;
in the original text the words lie thus, "I love, because the Lord hath heard", or "will hear"; and so read the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin, Ethiopic, Syriac, and Arabic versions, and so the Targum; and may be rendered, "I love that the Lord should hear me", so the Syriac and Arabic versions; nothing is more desirable and grateful to good men than that the Lord should hear them; but Kimchi and others transpose the words as we do, which gives a reason why he loved the Lord; because he heard his prayers, which were vocal, put up in a time of distress, in an humble and submissive manner, under the influence of the Spirit of grace and supplication, in the name of Christ, for his righteousness sake, and through his mediation; and such supplications are heard and answered by the Lord, sooner or later; and which engages the love of his people to him; see ( Psalms 34:1-6 ) . It may be applied to Christ, who offered up prayers and supplications, with strong crying and tears, and was always heard; and for which he thanked his Father and loved him, ( Hebrews 5:7 ) ( John 11:41 John 11:42 ) .

Psalms 116:1 In-Context

1 I love the Lord, because he hears me; he listens to my prayers.

2 He listens to me every time I call to him.

3 The danger of death was all around me; the horrors of the grave closed in on me; I was filled with fear and anxiety.

4 Then I called to the Lord, "I beg you, Lord, save me!"

5 The Lord is merciful and good; our God is compassionate.