Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Psalms 28:8

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Psalms 28:8. The Lord is their strength — Instead of למו lamo, to them, eight MSS. of Kennicott and De Rossi have לעמו leammo, to his people; and this reading is confirmed by the Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, AEthiopic, Arabic, and Anglo-Saxon. This makes the passage more precise and intelligible; and of the truth of the reading there can be no reasonable doubt. "The Lord is the strength of his PEOPLE, and the saving strength of his anointed." Both king and people are protected, upheld, and saved by him.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Psalms 26-28 Living uprightly

David appeals to God to support him against those who plot evil against him. God has done a work of grace in his life, and this causes him to hate the company of worthless people and make every effort to live the sort of life that pleases God (26:1-5). He desires righteousness, delights in worship, loves to spend hours in the house of God and enjoys telling others about God (6-8). He therefore asks that he will not suffer the same end as the wicked (9-10). Though determined to do right, he knows that he will not succeed without God’s help (11-12).
The psalmist is fully confident in the power of God and in God’s willingness to protect him (27:1-3). His desire is to live his life as if he is in the presence of God continually. Thereby he will have protection, and his life will be one of constant strength and joy (4-6). He prays that God will hear his prayers and never turn away from him. Others might reject him, but he is confident that God’s care of him will never fail (7-10). In view of the persecution he suffers, he asks that God will teach him more about the way he should live (11-12). He remains confident in God and this gives him patience. Whatever may happen, he knows that he can always depend on God’s help (13-14).
In the next psalm David again is in great distress and cries out to God to save his life. He does not want to die like the wicked, for whom an early death is a fitting punishment (28:1-3). His prayer to God to punish the wicked is not because of personal bitterness or the desire for revenge. It is because they are the enemies of God and they disregard all that he has done (4-5). David knows that God will answer his prayer and thereby strengthen David’s trust in him (6-7). This will also strengthen the faith of the people, who will have a better understanding of God as their defender and shepherd (8-9).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"Jehovah is their strength, and he is a stronghold of salvation to his anointed. Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: Be their shepherd also, and bear them up forever"

"Stronghold… to his anointed" (Psalms 28:8). Addis stated that "anointed" in this passage may refer, "Either to the king or to the high priests."W. E. Addis, p. 377. This is true enough, of course; but as Dahood noted, in this passage, "The reference is to the King."Mitchell Dahood in The Anchor Bible, p. 173.

"Here David builds upon the fact that he is God's anointed, that he is more than a private citizen. As the Lord's anointed (a term that grew into the Messiah), he stood for his people, and God's grace must be meant for them as well as for himself."Derek Kidner, Vol. 1, p. 123.

Being assured that God has indeed answered his prayer, David here takes courage and asks for the deliverance of all Israel.

"As God's anointed here, David realizes that the fortunes of the people rise and fall with him."Anthony L. Ash, p. 110. From this, there springs at once this fervent prayer for the welfare of all of God's people, even the nation of Israel. The sudden outcropping of the Shepherd metaphor in the last line is another mark of the Davidic authorship.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

The Lord is their strength - Margin, “his strength.” The Hebrew is, “their strength,” or “strength to them.” The allusion is to the people of God. The course of thought seems to be, that the psalmist, having derived in his own case assistance from God, or having found God a strength to him, his mind turns from this fact to the general idea that God was the strength of “all” who were in similar circumstancaes; or that all His people might confide in Him as he had done.

And he is the saving strength - Margin, as in Hebrew, “strength of salvations.” That is, In Him is found the strength which produces salvation. See the notes at Psalms 27:1.

Of his anointed - See Psalms 2:2, note; Psalms 20:6, note. The primary reference here is doubtless to the psalmist himself, as one who had been annointed or set apaart to the kingly office; but the connection shows that he intended to include all the people of God, as those whom He had consecrated or set apart to His service. See 1 Peter 2:5, 1 Peter 2:9.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

8.Jehovah is their strength. By way of explanation, he repeats what he had said before, that God had been his strength; namely, because he had blessed his armies. David had indeed employed the hand and labor of men, but to God alone he ascribes the victory. As he knew that whatever help he had obtained from men proceeded from God, and that his prosperous success flowed likewise from his gratuitous favor, he discerned his hand in these means, as palpably as if it had been stretched forth from heaven. And surely it is passing shameful, that human means, which are only the instruments of God’s power, should obscure his glory; although there is no sin more common. It is a manner of speaking which has great weight, when, speaking of his soldiers, he uses only the pronoun their, as if he pointed to them with the finger. The second clause assigns the reason of the other. He declares that himself and his whole army were endued with victorious valor from heaven, because he fought under the standard of God. This is the meaning of the word anointed; for, had not God appointed him king, and freely adopted him, he would not have favored him any more than he did Saul. By this means, in extolling solely the power of God which advanced him to the kingdom, he attributes nothing to his own policy or power. In the meantime, we may learn, that when one is satisfied of the lawfulness of his calling, this doctrine encourages him to entertain good hope with respect to the prosperous issue of his affairs. In particular, it is to be observed, as we have briefly noticed in another place, that the fountain whence all the blessings God bestows upon us flows is, that he hath chosen us in Christ. David employs salvations or deliverances in the plural number, because he had been often and in various ways preserved. The meaning, therefore, is, that from the time when God had anointed him by the hand of Samuel, he never ceased to help him, but delivered him in innumerable ways, until he had accomplished the work of his grace in him.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Psalms 28:1-9

Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent, I become like those that have gone down into the pit. Hear my voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle ( Psalms 28:1-2 ).

So David in his prayer had those times when he lifted up his hands towards God.

Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbors, but mischief is in their hearts. Give to them according to their deeds, according to their wickedness in their endeavors: give them after the work of their hands; render them their just desserts. Because they did not regard the works of the LORD, nor the operation of your hands, you will destroy them and not build them up. Blessed be the LORD, because he hath heard the voice of my prayers. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoices; and with my song will I praise him. The LORD is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed. Save thy people, and bless your inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up for ever ( Psalms 28:3-9 ). "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Psalms 28

This psalm is similar to Psalms 26, except that in this one, David’s distress was imminent. He believed God would not punish him with the wicked, and he asked Him to save and shepherd His people. The combination of confidence in Yahweh and prayer to Yahweh, that appears in Psalms 27, appears again here but in reverse order. Psalms 28:1-5 are lament, and Psalms 28:6-9 are thanksgiving.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

2. Confident praise for deliverance 28:5-8

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Consequently, David praised the Lord. He believed God had heard his prayer because the Lord had promised to hear the prayers of the godly. The Lord was David’s source of strength and defense, so he knew his attackers would fail. Furthermore, Yahweh consistently saved and defended His people and His anointed king.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

The Lord [is] their strength,.... The strength of his people, mentioned in Psalms 28:9; not only the strength of David in particular, but of all his people in general; see Psalms 37:39;

and he [is] the saving strength of his anointed; meaning either himself, as before, who was anointed by Samuel king of Israel, and therefore had not invaded and thrust himself into an office he had no call and right unto; or the Messiah, the Lord's Anointed, whom he heard, helped, and strengthened in the day of salvation, and delivered him from the power of death and the grave, and raised him from thence, and gave him glory; see Psalms 20:6.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      6 Blessed be the LORD, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.   7 The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.   8 The LORD is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.   9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up for ever.

      In these verses,

      I. David gives God thanks for the audience of his prayers as affectionately as a few verses before he had begged it: Blessed be the Lord,Psalms 28:6; Psalms 28:6. How soon are the saints' sorrows turned into songs and their prayers into praises! It was in faith that David prayed (Psalms 28:2; Psalms 28:2), Hear the voice of my supplications; and by the same faith he gives thanks (Psalms 28:6; Psalms 28:6) that God has heard the voice of his supplications. Note, 1. Those that pray in faith may rejoice in hope. "He hath heard me (graciously accepted me) and I am as sure of a real answer as if I had it already." 2. What we win by prayer we must wear by praise. Has God heard our supplications? Let us then bless his name.

      II. He encourages himself to hope in God for the perfecting of every thing that concerned him. Having given to God the glory of his grace (Psalms 28:6; Psalms 28:6), he is humbly bold to take the comfort of it, Psalms 28:7; Psalms 28:7. This is the method of attaining peace: let us begin with praise that is attainable. Let us first bless God and then bless ourselves. Observe, 1. His dependence upon God: "The Lord is my strength, to support me, and carry me on, through all my services and sufferings. He is my shield, to protect me from all the malicious designs of my enemies against me. I have chosen him to be so, I have always found him so, and I expect he will still be so." 2. His experience of the benefits of that dependence: "My heart trusted in him, and in his power and promise; and it has not been in vain to do so, for I am helped, I have been often helped; not only God has given to me, in his due time, the help I trusted to him for, but my very trusting in him has helped me, in the mean time, and kept me from fainting." Psalms 27:13. The very actings of faith are present aids to a dropping spirit, and often help it at a dead lift. 3. His improvement of this experience. (1.) He had the pleasure of it: Therefore my heart greatly rejoices. The joy of a believer is seated in the heart, while, in the laughter of the fool, the heart is sorrowful. It is great joy, joy unspeakable and full of glory. The heart that truly believes shall in due time greatly rejoice; it is joy and peace in believing that we are to expect. (2.) God shall have the praise of it: when my heart greatly rejoices, with my song will I praise him. This must we express our gratitude; it is the least we can do; and others will hereby be invited and encouraged to trust in him too.

      III. He pleases himself with the interest which all good people, through Christ, have in God (Psalms 28:8; Psalms 28:8): "The Lord is their strength; not mine only, but the strength of every believer." Note, The saints rejoice in their friends' comforts as well as their own; for, as we have not the less benefit from the light of the sun, so neither from the light of Gods' countenance, for others' sharing therein; for we are sure there is enough for all and enough for each. This is our communion with all saints, that God is their strength and ours, Christ their Lord and ours, 1 Corinthians 1:2. He is their strength, the strength of all Israel, because he is the saving strength of his anointed, that is, 1. Of David in the type. God, in strengthening him that was their king and fought their battles, strengthened the whole kingdom. He calls himself God's anointed because it was the unction he had received that exposed him to the envy of his enemies, and therefore entitled him to the divine protection. 2. Of Christ, his anointed, his Messiah, in the anti-type. God was his saving strength, qualified him for his undertaking and carried him through it; see Psalms 89:21; Isaiah 49:5; Isaiah 50:7; Isaiah 50:9. And so he becomes their strength, the strength of all the saints; he strengthened him that is the church's head, and from him diffuses strength to all the members, has commanded his strength, and so strengthens what he has wrought for us;Psalms 68:28; Psalms 68:80; Psalms 68:17; Psalms 68:18.

      IV. He concludes with a short but comprehensive prayer for the church of God, Psalms 28:9; Psalms 28:9. He prays for Israel, not as his people ("save my people, and bless my inheritance"), though they were so, but, "thine." God's interest in them lay nearer his heart than his own. We are thy people is a good plea, Isaiah 64:9; Isaiah 63:19. I am thine, save me. God's people are his inheritance, dear to him, and precious in his eyes; what little glory he has from this world he has from them. The Lord's portion is his people. That which he begs of God for them is, 1. That he would save them from their enemies and the dangers they were exposed to. 2. That he would bless them with all good, flowing from his favour, in performance of his promise, and amounting to a happiness for them. 3. That he would feed them, bless them with plenty, and especially the plenty of his ordinances, which are food to the soul. Rule them; so the margin. "Direct their counsels and actions aright, and overrule their affairs for good. Feed them, and rule them; sets pastors, set rulers, over them, that shall do their office with wisdom and understanding." 4. That he would lift them up for ever, lift them up out of their troubles and distresses, and do this, not only for those of that age, but for his people in every age to come, even to the end. "Lift them up into thy glorious kingdom, lift them up as high as heaven." There, and there only, will the saints be lifted up for ever, never more to sink or be depressed. Observe, Those, and those only, whom God feeds and rules, who are willing to be taught, and guided, and governed, by him, shall be saved, and blessed, and lifted up for ever.