Dublin, OH
Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents
Psalm 40. This psalm combines two parts: first, it gives thanks for the many past mercies the singer has received from God, and then it presents a fresh instance of need for God's help. Both parts recognize that an individual's experiences of God's mercy can lead to others rejoicing in God (vv. 3, 9-10, 16).
40:1-10 Many Past Mercies to Be Thankful For. The singer reflects on previous situations of need in which he called on God for help, and he inclined to me and heard my cry (v. 1). These situations have reinforced the lesson, blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud (so as to depend on them and to become like them, v. 4). The song also shapes its singers to share their experiences with the faithful in worship (vv. 3, 9-10): one's reception of God's help is not complete until he gives public thanks. These deliverances express God's steadfast love and faithfulness (v. 10; cf. Ex. 34:6).
40:6-8 These verses are part of the OT corrective to any who think that the sacrificial system worked automatically, apart from expressing faith, repentance, and obedience (cf. 50:8-15; 51:16-19; Prov. 14:9; Isa. 1:11-17). This is probably why Heb. 10:5-7 uses these verses (from the LXX), because its audience was tempted to abandon their specifically Jewish Christianity and revert to "ordinary" Judaism, with its sacrifices, thinking they would still be pleasing to God. They must see the sacrifices as a means of furthering God's larger purposes, not as producing effects on their own. An open ear (Ps. 40:6) is one ready to listen to and obey God's words.
