Psalm 45:12

And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(12) And the daughter of Tyre—i.e., Tyre itself and the Tyrians. (See Note Psalm 9:14.) Render,

The Tyrians with a gift entreat thy favour,

The rich ones of the people.

The objection that Tyre was never subject to Israel is not conclusive, since the gifts may be complimentary presents, such as Hiram sent to Solomon, not tribute. (See next Note.)

Entreat thy favour.—Literally, stroke thy face (comp. Job 11:19, Proverbs 19:6); or since the root-idea is one of polishing or making bright, we may render “makes thy face bright or joyful,” i.e., with pleasure at the splendid gifts.

Benson Commentary

Psalm 45:12. The daughter of Tyre shall be there — That is, the people of Tyre; as the daughter of Zion or Jerusalem, is put for their inhabitants: he mentions the Tyrians, because they, among others, and before many others, were to be converted to Christ, Matthew 11:21; Mark 3:8; Mark 7:24; Acts 21:3-5; but they are here put for all the Gentiles, whom that city fitly represented as being the mart of the nations, as she is called Isaiah 23:3. With a gift — To testify their homage, which was done by gifts or presents; and to procure thine and thy Lord’s favour. Even the rich — Of other nations.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

45:10-17 If we desire to share these blessings, we must hearken to Christ's word. We must forget our carnal and sinful attachments and pursuits. He must be our Lord as well as our Saviour; all idols must be thrown away, that we may give him our whole heart. And here is good encouragement, thus to break off from former alliances. The beauty of holiness, both on the church and on particular believers, is, in the sight of Christ, of great price, and very amiable. The work of grace is the workmanship of the Spirit, it is the image of Christ upon the soul, a partaking of the Divine nature. It is clear of all sin, there is none in it, nor any comes from it. There is nothing glorious in the old man or corrupt nature; but in the new man, or work of grace upon the soul, every thing is glorious. The robe of Christ's righteousness, which he has wrought out for his church, the Father imputes unto her, and bestows upon her. None are brought to Christ, but those whom the Father brings. This notes the conversion of souls to him. The robe of righteousness, and garments of salvation, the change of raiment Christ has put upon her. Such as strictly cleave to Christ, loving him in singleness of heart, are companions of the bride, who partake of the very same grace, enjoy the same privileges, and share in one common salvation. These, every one, shall be brought to the King; not one lost or left behind. Instead of the Old Testament church, there shall be a New Testament church, a Gentile church. In the believing hope of our everlasting happiness in the other world, let us always keep up the remembrance of Christ, as our only way thither; and transmit the remembrance of him to succeeding generations, that his name may endure for ever.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift - On the situation of Tyre, and its ancient splendor, see the notes at Matthew 11:21; the introduction to Isaiah 23; and the notes at that chapter. In the time of the psalmist it was probably the most wealthy and luxurious commercial town then existing; and it is referred to here as meaning that persons of highest rank, and of the greatest riches, and those who were surrounded most by affluence and luxury, would come to honor the king. Even the daughter of the magnificent prince of Tyre would deem it an honor to be present with a gift becoming her exalted station, and properly representing the wealth of a king of so much magnificence. This is the imagery. As applied to the Messiah, it is a description of the honor which would be shown to "him" by those of highest rank and largest wealth. Compare Isaiah 60:5-7, note; Isaiah 60:9, note; Isaiah 60:11, note; Isaiah 60:13 note.

Even the rich among the people - Rich men scattered among the people. Compare the notes at Psalm 22:29.

Shall entreat thy favor - Margin, as in Hebrew, "thy face." Shall desire thy smile; the light of thy countenance; thy friendship. The word rendered "entreat" - חלה châlâh - means properly to be rubbed; then, to be polished; and then, in the form used here (Piel) to rub, or stroke the face of anyone; to soothe or caress; to flatter, to court; and the idea is literally that of one who caresses or soothes, or seeks to conciliate. The sense here is, "the richest of the nations shall make court to thee with gifts." Gesenius, Lexicon. Ultimately, this will be true in regard to the Messiah. Compare as above, Isaiah 60. The wealth of the world will yet be laid at his feet, and, placed at his disposal. The effect of true conversion is always to make people willing to consecrate to the Saviour all that they possess.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

12. daughter of Tyre—(Ps 9:14); denotes the people. Tyre, celebrated for its great wealth, is selected to represent the richest nations, an idea confirmed by the next clause. These gifts are brought as means to conciliate the royal parties, representing the admitted subjection of the offerers. This well sets forth the exalted position of the Church and her head, whose moral qualities receive the homage of the world. The contribution of material wealth to sustain the institutions of the Church may be included (compare "riches of the Gentiles," Ps 72:10; Isa 60:5-10).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

The daughter of Tyre, i.e. the people or citizens of Tyre; as the daughter of Zion, or Jerusalem, or Babel, &c., are put for their inhabitants, 2 Kings 19:21 Psalm 137:8 Zechariah 9:9. He mentioneth the Tyrians, partly because they did give presents to Solomon, 1 Kings 5:1, &c., to whom here is a continued allusion through the whole Psalm; and partly because they among others, and before many others, were to be converted to Christ, as they were. See Matthew 11:21,22 Mr 3:8 7:24 Acts 21:3-5. But they are here put synecdochically for all the Gentiles, whom that city fitly represents, as being the mart of the nations, as she is called, Isaiah 23:3. And being a very rich and proud, and therefore a self-conceited and a stiffnecked people, their merchants being princes, Isaiah 23:8 they may in a particular manner represent all those great and proud princes and stubborn people of the Gentile world, which should be subdued to Christ by the preaching of the gospel.

With a gift; partly to testify their homage, which was done by gifts or presents, as appears from 1 Samuel 10:27 2 Samuel 8:2, &c.; and partly to procure thine, and consequently thy husband’s, favour, as it here follows.

The rich among the people of other nations.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift,.... That is, among the honourable women in the king's court and palace: it is a prophecy of the conversion of the Tyrians, and their admission into a Gospel church, state, which had its accomplishment in the times of Christ and his apostles, Mark 7:24; compare with this Psalm 87:4; and though Tyre is only mentioned, it being, as Kimchi on this place observes, near to the land of Judea; yet all other Gentiles are meant, to whom the Gospel should come to the conversion of them, and thereby become members of churches; where they are "with a gift", of themselves to the churches; see 2 Corinthians 8:5; joining themselves to them, to walk with them, and serve the Lord with one consent; and with the gift or offering of praise and thanksgiving, for the grace and blessings of it bestowed upon them; and with a free donation out of their substance, to support a Gospel church state, its ministers, and the interest, of religion; see Isaiah 23:18; the allusion may be to Exodus 23:15;

even the rich among the people shall entreat thy favour; either such as are rich, in a literal sense, both among the inhabitants of Tyre, who were a very wealthy people, Isaiah 23:8; and among other Gentiles, especially in the latter day, when kings shall be the church's nursing fathers, and bow down to her, Isaiah 49:23; or such who are so in a spiritual sense, enriched by Christ with all spiritual blessings, and who are particularly rich in faith, and heirs of a kingdom; these shall "entreat the favour" of the queen the church; not pray unto her, or worship her in a religious way; for God is only the object of such worship; but do those things by which they would show that they valued her friendship, and would gain her good will; as also acknowledge any former injury done her by them, and entreat her forgiveness; and particularly desire to have communion with her, and share in her prayers.

Geneva Study Bible

And the {k} daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.

(k) He signifies that many of those who are rich will be benefactors to the Church, although they do not give perfect obedience to the Gospel.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

12. The words shall be there are not in the Heb., and it has been proposed to render, And, O daughter of Tyre, with a gift shall the rich of the people intreat thy favour, making the bride a Tyrian princess. But apart from other objections, the daughter of Tyre should mean, according to the analogy of the similar phrases, daughter of Zion, daughter of Babylon, not an individual Tyrian woman, but the city and people of Tyre personified as a woman: and the A.V. no doubt gives the sense correctly, though some verb has probably been lost. The express mention of the wealthy merchant city of Tyre as the representative of the neighbouring nations which would send their greetings to the new queen is most naturally accounted for if the Psalm refers to Solomon, who was in close alliance with Tyre.

even the rich &c.] Render, Yea, the richest of people: i.e. as the LXX paraphrases, the people of the earth; or perhaps, of the land: wealthy nobles of the country as well as foreigners.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 12. - And the daughter of Tyro shall be there with a gift. Heathen nations shall be attracted to Christ and his Church, shall bring their offerings, and make submission, and humbly sue for favour. Tyro is taken as a type of heathen states and cities generally (comp. Isaiah 49:18-23; Isaiah 56:6-8; Isaiah 60:3-14). Even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour. (On the wealth of Tyre, see Isaiah 23:2-8; Ezekiel 26:12, 16; Ezekiel 27:3-33; Ezekiel 28:13, etc.) Psalm 45:12

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

(Heb.: 45:11-13) The poet next turns to address the one bride of the king, who is now honoured far above the kings' daughters. With שׁמעי he implores for himself a hearing; by ראי yb ;gni he directs her eye towards the new relationship into which she is just entering; by הטּי אזנך he bespeaks her attention to the exhortation that follows; by בּת he puts himself in a position in relation to her similar to that which the teacher and preacher occupies who addresses the bridal pair at the altar. She is to forget her people and her father's house, to sever her natural, inherited, and customary relationships of life, both as regards outward form and inward affections; and should the king desire her beauty, to which he has a right, - for he, as being her husband (1 Peter 3:6), and more especially as being king, is her lord, - she is to show towards him her profoundest, reverent devotion. ויתאו is a hypothetical protasis according to Ges. 128, 2, c. The reward of this willing submission is the universal homage of the nations. It cannot be denied on the ground of syntax that וּבת־צר admits of being rendered "and O daughter of Tyre" (Hitzig), - a rendering which would also give additional support to our historical interpretation of the Psalm, - although, apart from the one insecure passage, Jeremiah 20:12 (Ew. 340, c), there is no instance to be found in which a vocative with ו occurs (Proverbs 8:5; Joel 2:23; Isaiah 44:21), when another vocative has not already preceded it. But to what purpose would be, in this particular instance, this apostrophe with the words בּת־צר, from which it looks as though she were indebted to her ancestral house, and not to the king whose own she is become, for the acts of homage which are prospectively set before her? Such, however, is not the case; "daughter of Tyre" is a subject-notion, which can all the more readily be followed by the predicate in the plural, since it stands first almost like a nomin. absol. The daughter, i.e., the population of Tyre - approaching with presents shall they court (lit., stroke) thy face, i.e., meeting thee bringing love, they shall seek to propitiate thy love towards themselves. (פּני) חלּה corresponds to the Latin mulcere in the sense of delenire; for חלה, Arab. ḥlâ (root חל, whence חלל, Arab. ḥll, solvit, laxavit), means properly to be soft and tender, of taste to be sweet (in another direction: to be lax, weak, sick); the Piel consequently means to soften, conciliate, to make gentle that which is austere. Tyre, however, is named only by way of example; עשׁירי עם is not an apposition, but a continuation of the subject: not only Tyre, but in general those who are the richest among each separate people or nation. Just as אביוני אדם (Isaiah 29:19) are the poorest of mankind, so עשׁירי עם are the richest among the peoples of the earth.

As regards the meaning which the congregation or church has to assign to the whole passage, the correct paraphrase of the words "and forget thy people" is to be found even in the Targum: "Forget the evil deeds of the ungodly among thy people, and the house of the idols which thou hast served in the house of thy father." It is not indeed the hardened mass of Israel which enters into such a loving relationship to God and to His Christ, but, as prophecy from Deuteronomy 32 onward declares, a remnant thoroughly purged by desolating and sifting judgments and rescued, which, in order to belong wholly to Christ, and to become the holy seed of a better future (Isaiah 6:13), must cut asunder all bonds of connection with the stiff-neckedly unbelieving people and paternal house, and in like manner to Abram secede from them. This church of the future is fair; for she is expiated (Deuteronomy 32:43), washed (Isaiah 4:4), and adorned (Isaiah 61:3) by her God. And if she does homage to Him, without looking back, He not only remains her own, but in Him everything that is glorious belonging to the world also becomes her own. Highly honoured by the King of kings, she is the queen among the daughters of kings, to whom Tyre and the richest among peoples of every order are zealous to express their loving and joyful recognition. Very similar language to that used here of the favoured church of the Messiah is used in Psalm 72:10. of the Messiah Himself.