Псалом 19

These psalms represent two parts of a work devoted to the same subject. The XIX Psalm sets out a prayer to God on behalf of the people to grant David victory over the enemies who owned large military forces (Ps. 19:8). The Ark of the Covenant was then in Zion (Ps. 19:3). In the XX Psalm a song of thanksgiving is given to God for the victory granted, so brilliant that David, having destroyed his enemies in large numbers (Ps. 20:10, 13), put on a crown from the head of the enemy - the king, a crown decorated with expensive stones ( Ps. 20:4). Such an event occurred during David’s struggle with the Syro-Ammonites, when, after defeating the enemies, after the capture of Rabbah of Ammon, he took the crown of the king of Ammon and put it on his head, and destroyed the people who were in the city (2 Sam. 12:30–31). Ps.19:1. To the head of the choir. Psalm of David. Both psalms speak of David in the third person. We said that the psalms represent the prayer of David's people. These psalms can even be considered David’s prayer for himself. Speaking about oneself in the third person does not represent the peculiarity and exclusivity of this form; We find something similar, for example, in Ps. 17:51, 71, etc. Ps.19:2. May the Lord hear you in the day of sorrow, may the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May the Lord hear the king’s prayer for help in the fight against the enemy (2–6)! The people trust not in their own strength, but in God, and their enemies fell (7-10). Ps.19:4. Let him remember all your sacrifices and make your burnt offering fat. “Let him remember all the sacrifices... make him fat” - let every sacrifice made by David cause God’s favor towards him. A fat (fat) animal sacrificed testified to the piety and reverence of the sacrificer, since it showed that a person was sacrificing to God the most precious of his animals. Ps.19:5. May [the Lord] give you according to your heart and fulfill all your intentions. “Intentions” – plan; May the Lord give David the opportunity to successfully carry out his plan to fight his enemies. Ps.19:7. Now I have come to know that the Lord saves His anointed one and answers him from His holy heavens with the power of His saving right hand. “Now I have come to know” is the past instead of the future; now, that is, in a real war with the Syro-Ammonites, it will be revealed how the Lord loves ("saves... responds") his anointed one. Jews thirst for divine help, since the military forces of the fighting sides are unequal: “others” (Ps. 19:8), i.e., enemies, possessed a large number of war chariots, which Jews can counter only with their faith in God and hope for His help. You might be interested in: