1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.
9 But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
10 They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that sweareth by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.
<html><b>in the desert of Judah</b> when he was fleeing from Saul.</html>
<html><b>I seek You</b> Heb. אשחרך, I seek and search for You, as (Job 7:21): “and You shall seek me (ושחרתני), but I am not here”; (Job 8:5), “If you seek (תשחר) God.” <b>My soul thirsts for You</b> I thirst and long to come to You in Your house of prayer. <b>my flesh longs for You</b> Heb. כמה, an expression of desire. There is no similar [Scriptural expression]. <b>in an arid land</b> in the desert.</html>
<html><b>As I saw You in the Sanctuary, etc.</b> Heb. כן, like כאשר, as. I thirst to see Your strength and Your glory as I saw You in the Sanctuary, the Tabernacle of Shiloh. My soul will be sated with the visions of Your strength and Your glory.</html>
<html><b>Then I shall bless You in my lifetime</b> Heb. כן, like אָז, then, because אָז is translated ובכן. That is to say: Then, when I come before You, I shall bless You all the days of my life. <b>in Your name I shall lift my hands</b> to pray and laud.</html>
<html><b>when my mouth praises with expressions of song</b> Heb. ושפתי, languages of songs, as (Gen. 11: 1): “And all the earth was of one language (שפה),” which is translated: לישן חד.</html>
<html><b>on my couch</b> When I lie on my couch, I remember Your love. <b>in the watches</b> of the night. <b>I meditate about You</b> Heb. אהגה. I think about You.</html>
<html><b>Your right hand has supported me</b> that I should not fall.</html>
<html><b>But they</b> My enemies. <b>seek my soul to make it desolate</b> They come upon me in ambush on a dark day so that I should not sense their presence. <b>may they come into the depths of the earth</b> In a low place; let them come and fall into the grave and the pit.</html>
<html><b>May he be dragged by the sword</b> May enemies come upon my pursuers and drag each one of them with a sword, killing him. This is an elliptical verse, since it does not explain who will drag him. יגירהוּ is an expression of dragging, as (Micah 1:4): “as water poured down (המוגרים) a steep place”; (Job. 28:4), “A stream bursts forth from the place of its flow (גר).” <b>the portion of foxes</b> (I found: the portion of foxes May their dwellings be destroyed, that foxes should walk there.)</html>
<html><b>And may the king rejoice</b> He says this about himself because he had already been anointed. <b>may all who swear by Him boast</b> When they see that You will save me, all those who cleave to You and swear by Your name will boast and praise themselves. <b>for…will be closed</b> Heb. יסכר, will be closed up, as (Gen. 8:2). “The fountains of the great deep…were closed (ויסכרו).”</html>