Page:The Books of Chronicles (1916).djvu/173

Rh Yea, very few, and sojourners in it; And they went about from nation to nation, And from one kingdom to another people. He suffered no man to do them wrong; Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes; Saying, Touch not mine anointed ones, And do my prophets no harm. Sing unto the, all the earth; Shew forth his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, His marvellous works among all the peoples. For great is the, and highly to be praised: He also is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols: But the made the heavens. Honour and majesty are before him: Strength and gladness are in his place.

sojourners] The patriarchs were not simply strangers, but strangers who made a long sojourn in Canaan.

20. kingdom people] The "kingdom" is Egypt (Gen. xii.); the "people" the Canaanite and Perizzite (Gen. xiii.).

21. he reproved kings] Gen. xx. 3—7.

22. my prophets] Gen. xx. 7.

23—33 (= Ps. xcvi. 1—13).

23. Sing unto the ] In Ps. xcvi. 1, 2 this exhortation is thrice repeated; in Chron. it is once given. Note that ver. 2 a of the Ps. is also omitted here.

25. to be feared above all gods] i.e. to be feared as being above all "that are called gods," these being "things of nought" (ver. 26, R.V. mg.). The real existence of false gods is not assumed.

26. made the heavens] A fine epithet. Cp. Jer. x. 11, The gods that have not made the heavens shall perish from the earth.

27. are before him] i.e. are His, belong to Him as His attributes. Perhaps also before him refers to God's abode in heaven, while the parallel expression in his place (Ps. xcvi. 6, in his sanctuary) refers to His temple on earth.

Strength and gladness] Ps. xcvi. 6, Strength and beauty. The reference seems to be to the strength and gladness (or beauty) which God bestows on Israel (Ps. lxviii. 35; Is. lxi. 3).

in his place] Read with Ps. xcvi. 6, in his sanctuary. Cp. the two preceding notes.