Psalm 61:6

Thou wilt prolong the king's life: and his years as many generations.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(6) See margin, and render as a prayer.

Benson Commentary

Psalm 61:6-8. Thou wilt prolong the king’s life — My life. He calls himself king, either, 1st, Because, if this Psalm was composed before Saul’s death, yet even then he knew he was designed and appointed to be king; or, rather, 2d, Because it was not composed till Saul was dead, and he was actually crowned king, at least of Judah. And his years — The years of my life and reign; as many generations — As long as if I had a lease of it for many ages. Thus he speaks, because his kingdom was not like Saul’s, but established to him and his heirs; and because Christ, his Son and Heir, should actually, and in his own person, possess the kingdom for ever. We may observe further here, that the Chaldee Paraphrase adds the word Christ; thus, Thou shalt give unto Christ the King days upon days. His years shall be as the generations of this world, and the generations of the world to come. And so Theodoret observes, that the former part of the verse may very well agree with the psalmist, but that the latter part of it is by no means applicable to him, but only to Christ; who was, according to the flesh, to descend from him, and of whom the psalmist was an eminent type. He shall abide — Hebrew, ישׁב, jesheeb, he shall sit; namely, on the throne; before God for ever — Living and ruling as in God’s presence, serving him with his royal power, and worshipping him in his tabernacle. O prepare mercy and truth — Or, order, or appoint, as the word מן, man, here signifies, intending, either, 1st, The graces of mercy, or compassion and truth, or faithfulness, which are the great supporters of thrones; or rather, the effects of God’s mercy and truth. Thy truth, in giving me those mercies which thou hast promised to me; and thy mercy, in giving me such further blessings as I need, and thou seest fit to give me. So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever — I will never cease praising thee while I live, and after I die, I shall praise thee in eternity. Let us remember, we must make praising God the work of our time in this world; even to the last, as long as our lives are prolonged, we must continue praising him; and then it will be made the work of our eternity in the world to come, and we shall be praising him for ever. That 1 may daily perform my vows — That I may pay unto thee those services and oblations which I vowed to thee, when I was in trouble. David’s praising God was itself the performance of his vows, and it disposed his heart to the performance of them in other instances. Praising God, and paying our vows to him, must be our constant daily work; every day we must be doing something toward it; because it is all but little in comparison with what is due; because we daily receive fresh mercies, and because, if we think much to do it daily we cannot expect to be doing it eternally.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

61:5-8 There is a people in the world that fear God's name. There is a heritage peculiar to that people; present comforts in the soul, earnests of future bliss. Those that fear God have enough in him, and must not complain. We need desire no better heritage than that of those who fear God. Those abide to good purpose in this world, who abide before God, serve him, and walk in his fear; those who do so, shall abide before him for ever. And these words are to be applied to Him of whom the angel said, the Lord shall give unto him the throne of his father David, and of his kingdom there shall be no end, Lu 1:32. God's promises, and our faith in them, are not to do away, but to encourage prayer. We need not desire to be better secured than under the protection of God's mercy and truth. And if we partake of that grace and truth which came by Jesus Christ, we may praise him, whatever be our outward circumstances. But renewed experience of God's mercy and truth towards his people in Christ, is the main matter of our joy in him, and our praise unto him.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Thou wilt prolong the king's life - literally, "Days upon the days of the king thou wilt add;" that is, Thou wilt add days to those which thou hast already permitted him to live. The language does not necessarily mean that he would have a long life, but that he would still be permitted to live. He had apprehended death. He knew that his life was sought by those who were engaged with Absalom in the rebellion. At first it was uncertain what the issue would be. He had fled for his life. But now, in answer to prayer, he felt assured that his life would be preserved; that he would be permitted to return to his home and his throne; and that as king - as the sovereign of his people - he would be permitted to honor God.

And his years as many generations - Margin, as in Hebrew, generation and generation. This probably means that he would be permitted to live longer than the ordinary time of a generation; that he would live as if one generation - or as if one ordinary lifetime - were added to another, so that he would live through successive generations of men. The average life of a generation is about thirty years. David is supposed to have lived from 1085 before the Christian era to 1016 b.c., or 69 years, which would reach a third generation. This is a more natural interpretation of the passage than to suppose that he refers to an "ideal" king, or that his dynasty would continue for many generations.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

6, 7. the king—himself and his royal line ending in Christ. Mercy and truth personified, as in Ps 40:11; 57:3.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

The king’s life, i.e. my life. He calls himself king, either,

1. Because he was actually king, though Absalom usurped the throne; or,

2. Because he was designed and anointed to be king; and by calling himself

king, he supports himself under his present straits, and declares his confidence in God’s promise of the kingdom to him. Yet we must not think that David did commonly and publicly call or own himself to be king, which had neither been true nor convenient for his affairs; but this Psalm either was not composed whilst Saul lived, or at least was penned only for his private use and comfort, and not

committed to the chief musician; which indeed it could not be till David had the kingdom, and the inspection of the sacred music and service of the tabernacle.

His years, i.e. the years of my life and reign.

As many generations; as long as if I had a lease of it for many ages. Thus he speaks, partly because his kingdom was not like Saul’s, a matter of one age, expiring with his life, but established to him and his heirs for ever; and partly because Christ, his Son and Heir, should actually and in his own person possess the kingdom for ever.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Thou wilt prolong the King's life,.... Or "add days to the days of the King" (a). Meaning either himself, who, though his life was in danger by fighting with the Syrians and Edomites, or rather through the conspiracy of his son; yet was assured that he should yet live many years more, and especially in his posterity; and that his kingdom would be established for ever, as was promised him, 2 Samuel 7:12. Or rather the King Messiah, so the Targum: and Kimchi observes, that if this psalm respects the captivity, the King is the King Messiah: it may be understood of his life as man; who, though he died, rose again, and lives for evermore; and that, as to the glory of God the Father, so to the good of his people, for whom he makes intercession; and of the continuance of his spiritual seed, in whom he may be said to live, and his days be prolonged, Isaiah 53:10; and of the duration of his kingdom, of which there will be no end. For it is an everlasting one, as follows:

and his years as many generations; he living, and his posterity and kingdom continuing, age after age. The Targum is,

"his years as the generations of this world, and the generations of the world to, come.''

(a) "dies super dies regis adjicieo", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, &c.

Geneva Study Bible

Thou wilt prolong the king's {d} life: and his years as many generations.

(d) This chiefly refers to Christ, who lives eternally not only in himself but also in his members.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

6. Thou wilt prolong the king’s life] Lit., Thou wilt add days to the days of the king. Cp. 2 Kings 20:6. From speaking of the people (Psalm 61:5), David passes to speak of himself. His life had been in danger: but now the danger was over. At first sight the words may seem to be those of another, speaking of David, rather than those of David speaking of himself. But he thus uses the third person because he is speaking of himself in his capacity of king, referring to the promises made to the king as such. Cp. Jeremiah 38:5, where Zedekiah says, “The king is not he that can do anything against you” = I, though king, cannot &c.

and his years] R.V., his years shall be as many generations. This verse is not a prayer, and the text ought not to be altered to turn it into a prayer. It is a confident appeal to God’s promise and purpose. The long life which was one of Jehovah’s special blessings under the old covenant (Exodus 23:26; 1 Kings 3:11; Proverbs 3:2, and often), and which was a natural object of desire when the hope of a future life was all but a blank, was promised specially to the king (Psalm 21:4). The language is partly hyperbolical, like the salutation “Let the king live for ever” (1 Kings 1:31; Nehemiah 2:3); partly it thinks of the king as living on in his descendants (2 Samuel 7:13; 2 Samuel 7:16; 2 Samuel 7:29; Psalm 89:29; Psalm 89:36); but words which in their strict sense could apply to no human individual, become a prophecy of One greater than David; and thus the Targum here interprets ‘king’ by ‘King Messiah.’ See Introd. p. lxxiv ff; and Introd. to Psalms 21.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 6. - Thou wilt prolong (or, mayest thou prolong) the king's life. The question arises - What king? Some answer that David prays for the extension of his own life; or, if not exactly of his own life, then for the prolongation of his dynasty upon the throne (Hengstenberg); others suggest that a distant exile, perhaps in Assyria, prays for the life of the reigning King of Judah, Josiah probably ('Four Friends,' p. 117); but the Messianic interpretation is perhaps the best. The writer, lifted up above himself and above sublunary things, abiding, as he does, in the spiritual tabernacle under the shelter of God's wings (ver. 4), prays for long continuance of days for the true King, the ideal King, Messiah, of whom David and his house are types: "Mayest thou add days to the days of the King," and make his years as many generations; or, as generation and generation; i.e. eternally continuous. Psalm 61:6

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The second part begins with a confirmation of the gracious purpose of God expressed in Psalm 61:5. David believes that he shall experience what he gives expression to in Psalm 61:5; for God has already practically shown him that neither his life nor his kingship shall come to an end yet; He has answered the prayers of His chosen one, that, blended with vows, resulted from the lowly, God-resigned spirit which finds expression in 2 Samuel 15:25., and He has given or delivered up to him the land which is his by inheritance, when threatened by the rebels as robbers, - the land to which those who fear the covenant God have a just claim. It is clear enough that the receivers are "those who fear the name of Jahve;" the genitive relation describes the ירשּׁה as belonging to them in opposition to those who had usurped it. Or does ירשּׁה here perhaps mean the same as ארשׁת in Psalm 21:3? Certainly not. נתן ירשּׁה ל is a customary phrase, the meaning of which, "to give anything to any one as his inheritance or as his own property," is to be retained (e.g., Deuteronomy 2:19). God has acknowledged David's cause; the land of Israel is again wrested from those to whom it does not belong; and now begins a new era in the reign of its rightful king. In view of this the king prays, in Psalm 61:7, Psalm 61:8, that God would add another goodly portion to the duration of his life. The words sound like intercession, but the praying one is the same person as in Psalm 61:2-5. The expression מלכּא משׁיחא (the King Messiah) of the Targum shows to whom the church referred the word "king" after the extinction of the Davidic dynasty. The exalted tone of the wish expressed in Psalm 61:7 (cf. Joel 2:2) favours this without absolutely requiring it (cf. עולמים, Psalm 61:5, Psalm 21:5, and the royal salutation, 1 Kings 1:31; Daniel 2:4, and frequently). There ought (as also e.g., in Psalm 9:8) not to be any question whether ישׁב in Psalm 61:8 signifies "to sit enthroned," or "to sit" equals "to abide;" when the person spoken of is a king it means "to remain enthroned," for with him a being settled down and continuous enthronement are coincident. מן in Psalm 61:8 is imperat. apoc. for מגּה (after the form הס, נס, צו). The poet prays God to appoint mercy and truth as guardian angels to the king (Psalm 40:12, Proverbs 20:28, where out of pause it is צּרוּ; cf. on the other hand Psalm 78:7; Proverbs 2:11; Proverbs 5:2). Since the poet himself is the king for whom he prays, the transition to the first person in v. 9 is perfectly natural. כּן signifies, as it always does, so or thus equals in accordance therewith, corresponding to the fulfilment of these my petitions, thankfully responding to it. לשׁלּמי is the infinitive of the aim or purpose. Singing praise and accompanying it with music, he will make his whole life one continuous paying of vows.