Sálmarnir 71:18

Heilögum Biblíunni

18 Yfirgef mig eigi, ó Guð, þegar ég er gamall orðinn og grár fyrir hærum, að ég megi kunngjöra styrkleik þinn komandi kynslóð.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Now: Psalms 71:9, Genesis 27:1, 1 Samuel 4:15, 1 Samuel 4:18, Isaiah 46:4

when I am old and greyheaded: Heb. until old age and grey hairs

until I: Psalms 78:4, Psalms 78:6, Psalms 145:4, Psalms 145:5, Exodus 13:8, Exodus 13:14-17, 1 Chronicles 29:10-30, Acts 13:36

strength: Heb. arm, Isaiah 51:9, Isaiah 53:1

Reciprocal: Genesis 42:38 - bring Exodus 10:2 - And that Deuteronomy 4:9 - teach them Joshua 4:6 - when your 1 Samuel 12:2 - I am old 2 Samuel 19:7 - all the evil 2 Samuel 21:15 - and David waxed faint 1 Kings 18:12 - from my youth Job 6:10 - have not concealed Job 15:18 - from their Psalms 22:22 - I will Psalms 27:9 - thou Psalms 37:25 - I have Psalms 44:1 - have heard Psalms 48:13 - that ye Psalms 51:11 - Cast Psalms 66:16 - Come Psalms 92:14 - in old age Psalms 102:18 - This Psalms 118:17 - declare Psalms 119:43 - take not Psalms 138:4 - when they hear Psalms 138:8 - forsake Ecclesiastes 12:1 - Remember Ecclesiastes 12:5 - the almond Isaiah 45:21 - Tell ye Daniel 4:2 - I thought it good Joel 1:3 - General Luke 2:17 - General Luke 8:38 - saying John 15:16 - that your Acts 21:16 - an old Romans 5:4 - and experience Ephesians 4:29 - that which Ephesians 6:4 - but Philippians 1:22 - this Philemon 1:9 - Paul 2 Peter 1:15 - I will

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Now also, when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not,.... A repetition of his request, Psalms 71:9; with a reason annexed to it, suggested in the following words:

until I have showed thy strength unto [this] generation; or, "thine arm" e; which sometimes the Messiah, Isaiah 53:1; who is the power of by whom he made the worlds, and in whom all things consist; and who has wrought out the salvation people; and is the arm on which they lean, and they are upheld. And the psalmist may be thought to desire that he might be continued a little longer, and be favoured with the presence of God, and the influences of his Spirit and grace; that he might show forth in prophecy, both by word and writing, to the men of the then present age, more things concerning the person, office, and grace of Christ; his sufferings, death, resurrection from the dead, and session at the right hand of God; things which are spoken of in the book of Psalms. Sometimes the arm of the Lord denotes his power and strength,

Psalms 44:3; and so it may be taken here; and the next clause seems to be an explanation of it:

[and] thy power; or "[even] thy power",

to everyone [that] is to come; that is, to come into the world, that is to be born into it; namely, the power of God, not only in creating all things out of nothing, and supporting what is made; but in the redemption of men, in the conversion of sinners, and in the preservation of the saints, and in enabling them to hold on and out unto the end: and which is shown forth by the psalmist in what he has committed to writing; and which continue, and will continue, to the end of the world, for the instruction of those that come into it; see

Psalms 22:31.

e זרועך "brachium tuum", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, &c.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Now also when I am old and grey-headed - Margin, “unto old age and grey hairs.” This does not necessarily mean that he was then actually old and grey-headed, but it would imply that he was approaching that period, or that he had it in prospect. The time of youth was past, and he was approaching old age. The literal rendering would be, “And also unto old age and grey hairs, do not forsake me.” This is the prayer of one who had been favored in youth, and in all his former course of life, and who now asked that God would continue his mercy, and not forsake him when the infirmities of age drew on.

Forsake me not - Still keep me alive. Give me health, and strength, and ability to set forth thy praise, and to make known thy truth. See the notes at Psalms 71:9.

Until I have showed thy strength - Margin, as in Hebrew, “thine arm.” The arm is the instrument by which we execute a purpose, and it thus becomes a symbol of strength.

Unto this generation - literally, “to a generation.” The reference is to the generation then living; that is, the generation which had come on the stage since he had reached manhood - the generation - the new generation - which one who is approaching old age sees engaged in the active scenes of life, cultivating the fields, filling the offices, constructing the bridges and roads, manning the ships, occupying the dwellings, instead of those with whom he was formerly associated, and who are now in their graves. His own generation - the companions of his own early years - had passed away. He had lived to speak to a new generation, and he was desirous that they should start on the journey of life with the advantage of his experience, as of one that had gone before. Each generation “may” thus enter on life with all the accumulated wisdom of the past; that is, as wise as those had become who had themselves had the experience, and treasured up results from the observations, of a long life.

Society thus makes progress. One generation becomes wiser and better than the one which went before it, and the experience of all ages thus accumulates as the world advances, enabling a future age to act on the results of all the wisdom of the past. Man thus differs from the inferior creation. The animals, governed by instinct alone, make no progress. Compare the notes at Psalms 49:13. They profit neither by the wisdom, nor the follies of the past. The first robin built its nest of the same materials, and with as much art, as the robin does now; the first stock of bees constructed their cells with as nice and accurate adaptations, with mathematical precision as complete, as a swarm of bees will do now. Neither the bird nor the bee has learned anything by experience, by study, or by observation - nor lays up, to transmit to future generations of birds or bees, the results of its own sagacity or observation.

Not so with man. The result of the experiences of one generation goes into the general experience of the world, and becomes its capital; a new thought, or a new invention struck out by some splendid genius, becomes the common property of the race; and society, as it rolls on, gathers up all these results, as the Ganges or the Mississippi, rolling on to the ocean, gathers into one mighty volume all the waters that flow in a thousand streams, and all that come from rivulets and fountains, however remote. It is this which makes the life of “a man” so valuable in this world; this which makes it so desirable for a man, even when approaching old age, yet to live a little longer, for, as the fruit of his experience, his observation, his ripe wisdom, his acquired knowledge, he may yet suggest something, by writing or otherwise, which may add to the intelligence of the world; some principle which may be elaborated and perfected by the coming age.

And thy power - Thy greatness; majesty; glory.

To every one that is to come - To all future generations. That I may state truths which may benefit future ages. He who suggests one truth which the world was not in possession of before, is a benefactor to mankind, and will not have lived in vain, for that truth will do something to set the race forward, and to make the world better and happier. It is not a vain thing, then, for a man to live; and every one should endeavor “so” to live that the world may not be the worse - or may not go backward - by his living in it, but that it may be the wiser and the better: not merely so that it may keep on the same level, but that it may rise to a higher level, and start off on a new career.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Psalms 71:18. Old and grey-headed — In the ninth verse Psalms 71:9 he mentioned the circumstance of old age; here he repeats it, with the addition of hoary-headedness, which, humanly speaking, was calculated to make a deeper impression in his favour. Though all these things are well known to God, and he needs not our information, yet he is pleased to say, "Come now, and let us reason together." And when his children plead and reason with him, they are acting precisely as he has commanded.