God's Saints

God bless you dear saints. Let us praise the Lord for the grace that is given us and the honour put upon us.


God's Saints
⁶ Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, And a two-edged sword in their hand,
⁷ To execute vengeance on the nations, And punishments on the peoples;
⁸ To bind their kings with chains, And their nobles with fetters of iron;
⁹ To execute on them the written judgment— This honor have all His saints. Praise the Lord!
Psalms 149:6‭-‬9 NKJV



Verse 
● [Let] the high [praises] of God [be] in their mouth
Or "throats" F13; loudly declared by them. The word "praises" is not in the text, and so may be read, "the high things of God" F14; or, "the heights of God", as the Septuagint: and these are the perfections of God; as his omniscience, which is knowledge too high for a creature to attain unto, and even to conceive of; his omnipotence, for high is his right hand; his omnipresence, this is higher than heaven, deeper than hell, its measure is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea; his love, grace, and mercy, which are in the heavens; and his truth and faithfulness, which reach to the clouds; his eternity, immutability, and other attributes; all which should be often talked of and celebrated: also the high acts and works of God, those more inward and secret; as the thoughts of his heart, which are higher than ours, as the heavens than the earth; the everlasting love of God, which has an height not to be reached; the eternal choice of persons to grace and glory, before all time; the covenant of grace, which exceeds the mountains for height, as well as duration; and the glorious scheme of our peace, reconciliation, and redemption, contrived in the divine mind, and formed in Christ from everlasting: and others more outward, open, and manifest; as the works of creation and providence; of redemption by Christ; the operations of the Spirit, and the powerful success of the Gospel among Jews and Gentiles. The Vulgate Latin version and others render it, "the exaltations of God" F15; Father, Son, and Spirit: Jehovah the Father should be exalted in the mouths of his saints, for his love to them, choice of them, covenant with them, the mission of his Son on their account, and the regeneration of them according to his abundant mercy; and Jehovah the Son should be exalted by them with their mouths and lips, as well as in their hearts, in his person, by honouring him as they do the Father, in his offices, kingly, priestly, and prophetic; and the Holy Spirit should be exalted, by ascribing the work of grace to him, the beginning, carrying on, and finishing of it;

● And a two-edged sword in their hand,
⟪"which is no other than the word of God, (Ephesians 6:17) (Hebrews 4:12) ; one of its edges is the law, which sharply reproves and menaces for sin, threatening with curses, condemnation, and death; and which, in the Spirit's hand, cuts deep into the hearts of men, lays open the corruption of their nature, and the swarms of sin which are in them; it causes pain and grief, working wrath in the conscience; it wounds and kills, and is therefore called the letter that kills, ( 2 Corinthians 3:6 ) . The other edge is the Gospel, which cuts in pieces the best of men; all their works of righteousness, which it removes from their justification and salvation; and all their wisdom, holiness, freewill power, and creature abilities; and it cuts down the worst in man, his sinful as well as his righteous self; it teaches him to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts; it is useful to refute errors, and defend truth: and it is an instrument, and only a passive instrument, used by the Lord, as his power unto salvation; it is a sword, but only effectual as it is the sword of the Spirit; it is a part of the weapons of our warfare, and it is mighty, but only through God; it can do nothing of itself, but as it is in the hand of another; and it should be in the hands of all the saints in common, as well as in the hands of Gospel ministers, to withstand error, maintain truth, and repel the temptations of Satan. The Targum is,

``the praises of God in their throats, and as twoedged swords in their hands;''

making the praises of God and the twoedged swords to be the same: and so Jarchi and R. Jeshuah in Aben Ezra interpret them."⟫
©Gill, John. "Commentary on Psalms 149:6."



Verse 
● To execute vengeance upon the Heathen
⟪"Either upon the Gentile world, in the first times of the Gospel; when the apostles, going there with the twoedged sword of the word, vehemently inveighed against the idolatry of the Heathens, and exhorted them to turn from their idols to serve the living God; and divine power going along with their ministry, multitudes were turned from them; through the success of the Gospel, the oracles of the Heathen were struck dumb, their priests were despised, their idol temples were forsaken, and idols rejected; now were the judgment of the Heathen world, and the prince of it, cast out, and vengeance in this way taken upon it, or their disobedience to God revenged, ( John 12:31 ) ( 2 Corinthians 10:6 ) . Or else upon the Papists, as will be in the latter times of the Gospel; who are sometimes called Heathens and Gentiles, ( Psalms 10:16 ) ( Revelation 11:2 ) ; on whom vengeance will be taken for all their idolatry, superstition, and bloodshed of the saints; and they will be smitten and slain by the twoedged sword, proceeding out of the mouth of Christ, and as in the hands of his servants, ( Revelation 19:15 Revelation 19:21 ) ;

● [and] punishments upon the people;
or "reproofs" F16; sharp and piercing ones; such as the convictions the word of God will strike in the minds of men, and will be very distressing and afflicting to them; as the fire out of the mouths of the witnesses, which is their doctrine, will be to their enemies the Papists; and will torment and kill them, and be the savour of death unto death unto them, ( Revelation 11:5 )."⟫
©Gill, John. "Commentary on Psalms 149:7."



Verse 
● To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters
of iron.
⟪"Which is thought to allude to what was done to the Canaanitish kings, in the times of Joshua; and to the princes of Midian by Gideon; and to Agag by Saul; and to the Ammonites, Syrians, and others, by David: but it refers either to the first times of the Gospel, and the influence of the sword of the Spirit over the hearts of men; and on some very great personages, as kings and nobles, brought to Christ and his churches, in chains of powerful and efficacious grace, declaring a ready and cheerful subjection to his Gospel and ordinances; such as Constantine, Theodosius, and others; and who were instruments in subduing, conquering, and destroying tyrannical and persecuting emperors and princes, as Maximilian, Licinius, and others; see ( Isaiah 45:14 ) ; and more instances of the power of the Gospel, and the influence of divine grace on such persons, there will be in the latter day; see ( Isaiah 49:23 ) ( Isaiah 60:3 Isaiah 60:11 ) ( Psalms 72:10 Psalms 72:11 ) . It may also respect the use of the Gospel ministry, compared to a twoedged sword on the hearts of men in common; whereby Satan, the strong man armed, who keeps the palace as a king or prince, is dispossessed; and sin, which reigns like a king unto death, is dethroned, and grace is set up as a governing principle. But it may chiefly regard the destruction of antichristian kings and nobles, and their states, through the prevalence of the Gospel and the power of Christ, and the twoedged sword coming out of his mouth, (Revelation 17:14) (19:19-21)."⟫
©Gill, John. "Commentary on Psalms 149:8."



Verse 
● To execute upon them the judgment written
⟪"In the law, according to the Targum; either upon the seven nations of the land of Canaan, ( Deuteronomy 7:12 ) ; or upon all the enemies of God and his people, ( Deuteronomy 32:41 ) ; or rather in the Gospel; which declares, that whoever believes in Christ shall be saved, but whoever believes not shall be damned, ( Mark 16:16 ) . And according to this twoedged sword or word of God, and the sentence pronounced by it, and judgment written in it, things will everlastingly take place. Or it may principally have regard to the judgment upon antichrist in the latter day, written in the word of God; and which will be executed by the saints, with the twoedged sword in their hands, ( Revelation 16:6 ) ( Revelation 17:8 Revelation 17:16 ) ( Revelation 18:6 Revelation 18:7 ) ;

● this honour have all his saints;
which is spoken of throughout the psalm; as to be acceptable unto God, and well pleasing in his sight; to be adorned with grace, and beautified with salvation; to have the high praises of God in their mouths, and a twoedged sword in their hands, and to do the execution with it above mentioned;

● praise ye the Lord;
even all his saints; who of all men have most reason to do it, for the grace that is given them, and the honour put upon them."⟫
©Gill, John. "Commentary on Psalms 149:9."

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