CPSB Note: Neginoth = smitings; from Nagan, to strike, as on strings. See Ap. 65. xv.

Ap. 65. Xv. NEGINOTH (Smitings). This word, in The Companion Bible, stands in the sub-script ions of eight Psalms, i.e. 3, 5, 53, 54, 60,(sing.), 66, 75, and Hab. 3. (Not in the super-script ions of Psalm 4, 54, 55, 61 (sing. With 'al instead of Beth), 67, and 76). "Neginoth" is from nagan, to strike, or smite. Hence it has hitherto been associated with the striking of strings of some musical instrument! But why should the striking be associated with strings? Is there no other kind of smiting known? Why may it not refer to the stroke of affliction, or the smiting with words? Indeed, it is so associated in Lam. 3:63;

Lam 3:56 Thou hast heard my voice: hide not thine ear at my breathing, at my cry.

Lam 3:57 Thou drewest near in the day that I called upon thee: thou saidst, Fear not.

Lam 3:58 O Lord, thou hast pleaded the causes of my soul; thou hast redeemed my life.

Lam 3:59 O LORD, thou hast seen my wrong: judge thou my cause.

Lam 3:60 Thou hast seen all their vengeance and all their imaginations against me.

Lam 3:61 Thou hast heard their reproach, O LORD, and all their imaginations against me;

Lam 3:62 The lips of those that rose up against me, and their device against me all the day.

Lam 3:63 Behold their sitting down, and their rising up; I am their music.

"I am he who they smite [with their words]." In all these Neginoth Psalms there is the note of deliverance from personal smitings. See 3. 2 ; 5. 6 ; 53. 1; 54:3; 60:3, 5, 11; 66:10-12; 75:4, 5.

We have the verb again in 77:7,

Psa 77:6 I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search.

"I call to remembrance my song," or my stroke of affliction. So in Isaiah 38:20 "we will sing or make songs," or we will make songs concerning my stroke, or afflictions. In Hab. 3:19

Hab 3:19 The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments. we may , in the same way, understand it as "related to my smitings," i.e. those referred to in v. 16.

Hab 3:16 When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble: when he cometh up unto the people, he will invade them with his troops.

CPSB note: Hear = Answer. God. Heb. Elohim. Ap.4. I. God of my righteousness = my Righteous God. Genitive of relation or object. Have mercy = be gracious, or show favour.

Psa 4:2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? How long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.

CPSB Note: 2. men. Heb. 'ish. Ap. 14. II. 'Ish . First occurrence in feminine, Gen 2:23 'ishah,= woman. Therefore, 'ish = male, or husband; a man in contrast with a woman. A great man in contrast with ordinary men (Ps. 62 where "low" are called the children of Adam, and the "high" = children of 'Ish . So Ps. 62:9 and Isa. 2:9; 5:15; 31:8). When God is spoken of as a man, it is 'ish (Ex. 15:3. So Josh. 5:13. Dan. 9:1; 10:5; 12:6, 7. Zech. 1:8, &c.). Also, in such expressions as the "man of God," "man of understanding."

How long = until when, Ellipsis correctly supplied. Leasing = falsehood. Anglo-Saxon = leasung ; Mid. Eng.= lesing.

Selah. connecting his enemies acts with his own sure defense.

Psa 4:3 But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him.

CPSB Note: the LORD. Heb. Jehovah Ap.4. II. Set apart. All depended on Jehovah's favour (Num. 14:8).

Num 14:8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.

Some codices, with Sept. and Vulg., read "hath given distinction to." Him that is godly: i.e. A subject of Grace.

(Rob: here again the principles' of the Gospel clearly laid out for us in the Old Testament, again justifies that it is not unmerited favour. And as in Num. 14:8. Above as Joshua and Caleb by faith gave a good report, we also are seeing Giants in the land! If we faint not, and hold to the promise just as Joshua and Caleb did, we too will enter the promised land. Who does the calling, and cleansing and justifying? Verse 3 states The LORD hath. It is His special work, Indeed Amazing Grace!).

Psa 4:4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.

CPSB Note: 4. stand in awe, &c.,= Stand in awe and (so) sin not . Heb, chata. Ap.44. 1.

Chata, to sin, to miss the mark (as in Judg. 20. 16). Also of the feet, to stumble and fall. (prov. 19. 2).

Pro 19:2 Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good; and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.

Chata cont. Hence morally a coming short, blameworthiness- not necessarily willful. An act of thought, word or deed, not a condition. Usually (but by no means always) rendered sin, and other words also so rendered.

Still = silent. Selah. Connecting their sin with its being put away. [Rob? Our sin, or better yet My sin, and who the their of (their sin above), but those "that the LORD hath set apart," and to what end do you ask? To be His own possession, conformed to the image of His Son, that He may be the firstborn of many brethren. There is power to walk in humility if we would "connect our sin, with it's being put away" and the grace shown unto us and following our Lords example in the temptation holding to the WORD with grateful hearts.]

Psa 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.

CPSB Note: 5. Offer the sacrifices. No Art. Heb, zabah. Ap. 43. I. iv.

Psa 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.

Ap. 43. I. Iv. Zabah. Zabach, to slay [and offer up] ; hence to offer what has been slain; to sacrifice. Hence No. xii below. Xii. Zebach= any offering slain (from No. II. iv, above).

The proper word for a victim, slain and offered. The Hebrew name for altar (mizbeah) is derived from the same root, and denotes the place of slaughter. Cp. Gen. 22.

CPSB Note: 5.

Sacrifices of righteousness = righteous sacrifices. Genative of Character. How could they offer these while in rebellion to the Lord's Anointed? Trust = confide. Heb. batah. Ap. 69. 1.

Ap. 69. TRUST. i. batah = to confide in, so as to be secure and without fear.

Psa 4:6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.

CPSB Note: 6. That say...good. see note on 144:12-15

Psa 144:12 That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace:

Psa 144:13 That our garners may be full, affording all manner of store: that our sheep may bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our streets:

Psa 144:14 That our oxen may be strong to labour; that there be no breaking in, nor going out; that there be no complaining in our streets.

Psa 144:15 Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the LORD.

CPSB Note: Ps. 144:12-15. 12. That = who. Heb. 'asher. Supply the Ellipsis thus: "Who [say] our sons Are, &c." All the words italic type are in vv. 12-15- may be omitted, or the present tense may be supplied throughout. The verb "say" or "saying" is very frequently thus to be understood. See note on 10:5.

Psa 109:5 And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

CPSB Note: 5. For my love. Note here the Ellipsis of the verb "Saying," emphasizing what is said rather than the saying of it. This verb has often been thus supplied. See Ge. 26:7. 1 Kings 2:34; Ps. 2:2; 144:12; Prov.1:21; Isa. 5:9; 14:8; 18:2; 22:12; 24:14, 15; 28:9; Jer. 9:19; 11:19; 50:5; Lam. 3:41; Hos. 14:8; Acts 9:6; 10:15; 14:22. Lift Thou up. No priest with David to give the blessing of Num. 6:24-26. See 2 Sam. 15:32-37.

Num 6:23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,

Num 6:24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:

Num 6:25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

Num 6:26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

2 Sa 15:32 And it came to pass, that when David was come to the top of the mount where he worshipped God, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat rent, and earth upon his head:

2 Sa 15:33 Unto whom David said, If thou passest on with me, then thou shalt be a burden unto me:

2 Sa 15:34 But if thou return to the city, and say unto Absalom, I will be thy servant, O king; as I have been thy father's servant hitherto, so will I now also be thy servant: then mayest thou for me defeat the counsel of Ahithophel.

2 Sa 15:35 And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and Abiathar the priests? therefore it shall be, that what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king's house, thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests.

2 Sa 15:36 Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz Zadok's son, and Jonathan Abiathar's son; and by them ye shall send unto me every thing that ye can hear.

2 Sa 15:37 So Hushai David's friend came into the city, and Absalom came into Jerusalem.

CPSB Note: 6. Countenance, Fig. Anthropopatheia, or Condescension Ap. 6. Ascribing to God what belongs to human and rational beings, irrational creatures, or inanimate things.

Psa. 4:7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.

CPSB Note: 7. Gladness. This was (and is) true "good." Their corn. See note on Ps. 144:15 (Rob: already above in notes). Wine = new wine. Heb. tirosh. Ap 27. II.

Ap. 27. Wine. II. Tirosh, from yarash, to posses = must, new wine, so called because it gets possession of the brain. It occurs thirty- four times in the Old Testament. Hosea 4:11 "Whoredom and yayin and tirosh take away the heart" (i.e. they blunt the feelings and derange the intellect).

Some say tirosh means grapes, and is used for solid food, because in Gen. 37. 28 we read of "tirosh and corn." We might as well say that when we speak of "bread and water," that water is also a solid, because bread is a solid. On the contrary, "tirosh and corn" mean liquids and solids, by the Fig.

Prov 3:10. "Thy presses shall burst forth with tirosh."

Isa. 62:8. "The son's of the stranger shall not drink thy tirosh".

Joel 2:24. "The fats (vats) shall overflow with tirosh and oil."

Mic. 6:15. "Thou shalt tread... tirosh, but shall no drink yayin."

Joel 1:10 The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.

Joel 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

Joel 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

Joel 3:18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

(Rob note: the wine of Psa. 4:7. Tirosh = new wine. New wine , oil are used interchangeably of the Anointing and/or presence of Ruach Ha Kodesh, the Holy Spirit of God. For the last 50 years there has been a famine for hearing the word of God, The Govt. removed the scriptures from public education, previously another 50 years back, the two main texts used universally in the USA were the New England Primer, and the Holy Bible. There was a restraining presence from the abundance of the Word of God. The entire Nation was by no means wholly Christian. But the Word of God provided a safe framework, and in a vague general sense a conscience for the Nation. This is lost to us. The current generations are post modern and clueless to the reality, and sovereign purposes of God. God is not alarmed, he is not reactionary, he is fulfilling His purposes in every life. Many scriptures come to mind, promises Jesus made to His elect . Tirosh is differentiated from yayin. Yayin was forbidden as it produced drunkenness, while the tirosh = new wine "gets possession of the brain". Oh that the holy Spirit of God would wash our minds with the water of the word, would in fact get possession of our brains, of our heart soul and mind to agree with God , about what He says. And in what we do in response to the TRUTH of His WORD.)

Psa 4:8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.

CPSB Note: and sleep = sleep at once. This reference is to 2 Sam. 17. 2. See note there.

Psa 4:8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.

CPSB Note: and sleep = sleep at once. This reference is to 2 Sam. 17:2. See note there.

2 Sa 17:1 Moreover Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Let me now choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night:

2 Sa 17:2 And I will come upon him while he is weary and weak handed, and will make him afraid: and all the people that are with him shall flee; and I will smite the king only:

CPSB Note: I will. Ahithophel manifests personal vengeance. See note on 16:21 and 17:1.

2 Sa 16:21 And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Go in unto thy father's concubines, which he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel shall hear that thou art abhorred of thy father: then shall the hands of all that are with thee be strong.

2 Sa 16:22 So they spread Absalom a tent upon the top of the house; and Absalom went in unto his father's concubines in the sight of all Israel.

2 Sa 16:23 And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he counseled in those days, was as if a man had enquired at the oracle of God: so was all the counsel of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom.

CPSB Note: 16:21 said. Instigated by feelings of private revenge against David for His sin with Bathsheba; she being the daughter of His son, Eliam. Foretold by Nathan (the prophet 12, 11,12).

this night. Cp. Psa. 4:8. Psa 4 is concerning inheritances. David's was in jeopardy (v.2), but his trust was in the Jehovah's favour (15:25; 22:20; Ps 18:19).

Makest = wily make. Safety = confidence. To the chief musician upon Nehiloth. Upon Nehiloth, better, nehaloth = concerning inheritances. Referring to Jehovah's favour as being the true inheritance of godly Israelites as shown in vv. 3,6,7.

Psa 4:1 To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm of David. Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.

Psa 4:2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? How long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.

Psa 4:3 But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him. Psa 4:4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.

Psa 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.

Psa 4:6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.

Psa 4:7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.

Psa 4:8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.

Psalms 4 - Study

3/14/2012 - Rob Seal