Psa 81:1-4 | Clarke | e4.org | PSALM LXXXI An exhortation to the people to praise God for his benefits , 1-7; and to attend to what he had prescribed , 8-10; their disobedience lamented , 11; the miseries brought on themselves by their transgressions , 12-16. NOTES ON PSALM LXXXI The title is the same as to , which see. There are various opinions concerning the occasion and time of this Psalm: but it is pretty generally agreed that it was either written for or used at the celebration of the Feast of Trumpets, (see on ,) which was held on the first day of the month Tisri , which was the beginning of the Jewish year; and on that day it is still used in the Jewish worship. According to Jewish tradition, credited by many learned Christians, the world was created in Tisri , which answers to our September . The Psalm may have been used in celebrating the Feast of Trumpets on the first day of Tisri, the Feast of Tabernacles on the fifteenth of the same month, the creation of the world, the Feasts of the New Moons, and the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt; to all which circumstances it appears to refer. Verse 1. Sing aloud unto God our strength ] There is much meaning here: as God is our strength , let that strength be devoted to his service; therefore, sing aloud ! This is principally addressed to the priests and Levites .

‏ Psalms 81:1-4

PSALM LXXXI

An exhortation to the people to praise God for his benefits, 1-7;

and to attend to what he had prescribed, 8-10;

their disobedience lamented, 11;

the miseries brought on themselves by their transgressions,

12-16.

NOTES ON PSALM LXXXI

The title is the same as to Ps 8:1, which see. There are various opinions concerning the occasion and time of this Psalm: but it is pretty generally agreed that it was either written for or used at the celebration of the Feast of Trumpets, (see on Le 23:24,) which was held on the first day of the month Tisri, which was the beginning of the Jewish year; and on that day it is still used in the Jewish worship. According to Jewish tradition, credited by many learned Christians, the world was created in Tisri, which answers to our September. The Psalm may have been used in celebrating the Feast of Trumpets on the first day of Tisri, the Feast of Tabernacles on the fifteenth of the same month, the creation of the world, the Feasts of the New Moons, and the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt; to all which circumstances it appears to refer.

Verse 1. Sing aloud unto God our strength] There is much meaning here: as God is our strength, let that strength be devoted to his service; therefore, sing aloud! This is principally addressed to the priests and Levites.

Verse 2. Take a psalm] zimrah. I rather think that this was the name of a musical instrument.

Bring hither the timbrel] toph; some kind of drum or tom tom.

The pleasant harp] kinnor. Probably a sistrum, or something like it. A STRINGED instrument.

With the psaltery.] nebel, the nabla. The cithara, Septuagint.

Verse 3. Blow up the trumpet] shophar, a species of horn. Certainly a wind instrument, as the two last were stringed instruments. Perhaps some chanted a psalm in recitativo, while all these instruments were used as accompaniments. In a representative system of religion, such as the Jewish, there must have been much outside work, all emblematical of better things: no proof that such things should be continued under the Gospel dispensation, where outsides have disappeared, shadows flown away, and the substance alone is presented to the hearts of mankind. He must be ill off for proofs in favour of instrumental music in the Church of Christ, who has recourse to practices under the Jewish ritual.

The feast of the new moon was always proclaimed by sound of trumpet. Of the ceremonies on this occasion I have given a full account in my Discourse on the Eucharist. For want of astronomical knowledge, the poor Jews were put to sad shifts to know the real time of the new moon. They generally sent persons to the top of some hill or mountain about the time which, according to their supputations, the new moon should appear. The first who saw it was to give immediate notice to the Sanhedrin; they closely examined the reporter as to his credibility, and whether his information agreed with their calculations. If all was found satisfactory, the president proclaimed the new moon by shouting out mikkodesh! "It is consecrated." This word was repeated twice aloud by the people; and was then proclaimed every where by blowing of horns, or what is called the sound of trumpets. Among the Hindoos some feasts are announced by the sound of the conch or sacred shell.

Verse 4. This was a statute for Israel] See the statute, Nu 10:10, and Le 23:24.