| Barnes' Notes on the Bible Thy faithfulness - The accomplishment of thy promises. Is unto all generations - Margin, "to generation and generation." From one generation to another. The generations of people change and pass away, but thy promises do not change. They are as applicable to one generation as to another; they meet every generation alike. The people of no one age can lay any exclusive claim to them, or feel that they were made only for them. They are as universal - as much adapted to the new generations that come upon the earth - as the light of the sun, ever-enduring, is; or as the fountains and streams, which flow from age to age. Thou hast established the earth, and it abideth - Margin, "Standeth." It is firm. The earth thus established or made firm, is an illustration of thy faithfulness, and of the stability and permanence of thy promises. It is the same from generation to generation, with its rivers, streams, and fountains; with its fruits and flowers; with its balmy air and its sweet prospects; with its riches of gold and silver; with its pearls and diamonds; with its treasures of land and ocean. So is the word of God - so are the gracious promises which he has addressed to people - the same in every age.
Clarke's Commentary on the BibleThy faithfulness - That which binds thee to accomplish the promise made. And this shall be, not for an age merely, but from generation to generation; for thy promises refer to the whole duration of time. Thou hast established the earth - Thou hast given it its appointed place in the system, and there it abideth.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleThy faithfulness is unto all generations,.... Or "to generation and generation" (y); to his people in every age, fulfilling his word, supplying their wants, giving them new mercies every morning and every day; never leaving and forsaking them, according to his promise: his faithfulness never fails, it endures for ever, and is exceeding great and large indeed; see Lamentations 3:23; thou hast established the earth, and it abideth: laid the foundation of it so firm and sure, that it cannot be removed: and though one generation has passed after another, the earth abides where it was, and will do for ever; and as firm and stable, and never failing, is the faithfulness of God, which this is designed to illustrate. So some supply it, "as thou hast established the earth", &c. (z); see Psalm 24:2. (y) "in generationem et generationem", Gejerus; "in aetatem et aetatem", Cocceius. (z) "Quemadmodum vel sicut fundasti", Gejerus.
Geneva Study BibleThy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth.
King James Translators' Notesunto...: Heb. to generation and generation abideth: Heb. standeth
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary90. thou hast established the earth, and it abideth-(Ps 33:9).
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary119:89-96 The settling of God's word in heaven, is opposed to the changes and revolutions of the earth. And the engagements of God's covenant are established more firmly than the earth itself. All the creatures answer the ends of their creation: shall man, who alone is endued with reason, be the only unprofitable burden of the earth? We may make the Bible a pleasant companion at any time. But the word, without the grace of God, would not quicken us. See the best help for bad memories, namely, good affections; and though the exact words be lost, if the meaning remain, that is well. I am thine, not my own, not the world's; save me from sin, save me from ruin. The Lord will keep the man in peace, whose mind is stayed on him. It is poor perfection which one sees and end of. Such are all things in this world, which pass for perfections. The glory of man is but as the flower of the grass. The psalmist had seen the fulness of the word of God, and its sufficiency. The word of the Lord reaches to all cases, to all times. It will take us from all confidence in man, or in our own wisdom, strength, and righteousness. Thus shall we seek comfort and happiness from Christ alone.
Matthew Henry's Whole Bible CommentaryVerses 89-91 Here, 1. The psalmist acknowledges the unchangeableness of the word of God and of all his counsels: "For ever, O Lord! thy word is settled. Thou art for ever thyself (so some read it); thou art the same, and with thee there is no variableness, and this is a proof of it. Thy word, by which the heavens were made, is settled there in the abiding products of it;" or the settling of God's word in heaven is opposed to the changes and revolutions that are here upon earth. All flesh is grass; but the word of the Lord endures for ever. It is settled in heaven, that is, in the secret counsel of God, which is hidden in himself and is far above out of our sight, and is immovable, as mountains of brass. And his revealed will is as firm as his secret will; as he will fulfil the thoughts of his heart, so no word of his shall fall to the ground; for it follows here, Thy faithfulness is unto all generations, that is, the promise is sure to every age of the church and it cannot be antiquated by lapse of time. The promises that look ever so far forward shall be performed in their season. 2. He produces, for proof of it, the constancy of the course of nature: Thou hast established the earth for ever and it abides; it is what it was at first made, and where it was at first placed, poised with its own weight, and notwithstanding the convulsions in its own bowels, the agitations of the sea that is interwoven with it, and the violent concussions of the atmosphere that surrounds it, it remains unmoved. "They" (the heavens and the earth and all the hosts of both) "continue to this day according to thy ordinances; they remain in the posts wherein thou hast set them; they fill up the place assigned them, and answer the purposes for which they were intended." The stability of the ordinances of the day and night, of heaven and earth, is produced to prove the perpetuity of God's covenant, Jer. 31:35, 36; 33:20, 21. It is by virtue of God's promise to Noah (Gen. 8:22) that day and night, summer and winter, observe a steady course. "They have continued to this day, and shall still continue to the end of time, acting according to the ordinances which were at first given them; for all are thy servants; they do thy will, and set forth thy glory, and in both are thy servants." All the creatures are, in their places, and according to their capacities, serviceable to their Creator, and answer the ends of their creation; and shall man be the only rebel, the only revolter from his allegiance, and the only unprofitable burden of the earth.? |
