Psalms 68:30

WEB

Rebuke the wild animal of the reeds, the multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the peoples. Being humbled, may it bring bars of silver. Scatter the nations that delight in war.

KJV

Rebuke the company of spearmen, the multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the people, till every one submit himself with pieces of silver: scatter thou the people that delight in war.

Commentary

Rebuke the company of spearmen,.... Or, "of the reed" (d); that is, men that use and fight with spears, like to reeds, as Kimchi and Ben Melech interpret it. Aben Ezra says, that spears are so called in the Kedarene or Arabian language; and the Arabians use a sort of reed for a spear, as Mr. Castel out of Avicenna observes (e), and Pliny (f) says they are used spears: or rather the words should be rendered, "rebuke", restrain, destroy "the wild beast", or "beasts of the reed" (g); as the Syriac, Septuagint, and Vulgate Latin versions, and others, render it: the allusion is to such kind of creatures as lions in the thickets of Jordan; See Gill on Jer 49:19 ; and the behemoth, that lies under the covert of reeds, Job 40:21 ; or as the crocodile in the river Nile, and other rivers of Egypt, which abounded with flags and reeds, in which such creatures lay; see Isa 19:6 ; perhaps the hippopotamus, or river horse, is referred to; so may design an insidious, cruel, and tyrannical prince; such an one as Pharaoh king of Egypt, Isa 27:1 ; a type of antichrist, and who seems to be here meant; for as Rome, for its wickedness, cruelty, and idolatry, is spiritually called Egypt, Rev 11:8 ; so the Romish antichrist is the beast ascending out of the bottomless pit; and is an insidious creature, lies in wait to deceive, puts on the mask and visor of Christianity; has two horns, like a lamb in his ecclesiastic capacity; lies covered with the reeds of the traditions, inventions, and the doctrines of men; and teaches men to trust in the staff of a broken reed, in their own merits, and the merits of others. Jarchi interprets it of Esau, who is like to a wild boar that dwells among the reeds; and the Talmud (h) interprets it of a beast that dwells among reeds, and the gloss explains it of the nation of Amalek; the Turks, according to some, are meant; the multitude of bulls; the secular powers of the beast of Rome; the antichristian states, their kings and princes, comparable to these creatures for their great strength, power, and authority, and for their fierceness and furiousness in persecuting the people of God: these are horned creatures, the ten horns of the beast, in his civil and secular capacity, with which he pushes at the saints, casts them down, and tramples upon them; see Psa 22:13 ; compared with Rev 19:18 ; with the calves of the people; or the people, comparable to calves for their weakness, folly, and stupidity; these are the common people under the government and influence of the kings and princes of the earth; the people, multitudes, nations, and tongues, over whom the antichristian harlot sits, rules, and reigns: this phrase shows that the whole is to be taken, not in a literal, but figurative, sense; till everyone submit himself with pieces of silver; that is, rebuke them by thy word, or by thy providences, until they become sensible of their sins, repent of them, and submit themselves to Christ; and bring with them their wealth and substance, and lay it at his feet for the use of his interest, as a testification of their subjection to him: but as this is not to be expected from the persons before described, at least not from everyone of them, the words require another sense, and are to be considered as a continued description of the persons to be rebuked, and may be rendered, even everyone "that treads with pieces of silver" (k); that walks proudly and haughtily, being decorated with gold and silver on their garments; so the Romish antichrist is said to be decked, his popes, cardinals, and bishops, with gold and precious stones, Rev 17:4 ; or "everyone that humbles himself for pieces of silver" (l), as the word is rendered in Pro 6:3 ; that lies down to be trampled upon for the sake of temporal advantage; and so it describes the parasites and flatterers of the man of sin, who crouch unto him, take his mark in their hands or foreheads, that they may be allowed to buy and sell; all these, it is desired, God would rebuke, not in love, but with flames of fire, as he will sooner or later; for when the kings of the earth are become Christians, as in Psa 68:29 , God will put it into their hearts to hate the whore, and burn her flesh with fire; scatter thou the people that delight in war; as antichrist, and the antichristian states, do: they take delight in making war with the saints, and in slaying of them, to whom power has been given so to do; with whose blood they have been made drunk, and have took as much pleasure in the shedding of it as a drunken man does in indulging himself to excess in liquor; but these in God's own time shall be scattered, when Christ the Lamb shall fight against them with the sword of his mouth, and shall utterly destroy them; see Rev 13:7 . (d) "congregationem calami", Pagninus. (e) Lexic. Polyglott. col. 3376. (f) Nat. Hist. l. 16. c. 36. (g) "Feram cannae", Montanus; "bestiam arundineti", Cocceius; "feram vel bestiam arundinis", Gejerus, Michaelis. (h) T. Bab. Pesachim, fol. 118. 2. (k) "gloriantem se", Montanus, Vatablus; "calcantem", Rivet. (l) "Ob fragmina argenti", Gejerus.