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75. Psalm 75

¹ We praise you, God,
we praise you, for your Name is near;
people tell of your wonderful deeds.

    ² You say, “I choose the appointed time;
   it is I who judge with equity.
³ When the earth and all its people quake,
   it is I who hold its pillars firm. The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here.
⁴ To the arrogant I say, ‘Boast no more,’
   and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns. Horns here symbolize strength; also in verses 5 and 10.
⁵ Do not lift your horns against heaven;
   do not speak so defiantly.’”

    ⁶ No one from the east or the west
   or from the desert can exalt themselves.
⁷ It is God who judges:
   He brings one down, he exalts another.
⁸ In the hand of the LORD is a cup
   full of foaming wine mixed with spices;
he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth
   drink it down to its very dregs.

    ⁹ As for me, I will declare this forever;
   I will sing praise to the God of Jacob,
¹⁰ who says, “I will cut off the horns of all the wicked,
   but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”

9. and 10. But I will publish for ever. This conclusion of the psalm evinces the joy which God’s people felt from having experienced that He was their deliverer in adversity; for it seems to be their own experience which they engage to publish, and on account of which they resolve to sing praise to God. Whence also they gather, that by the divine aid they will overcome all the power of the reprobate; and that being themselves possessed of righteousness and equity, they will be sufficiently armed for their own preservation and defense. The expression, the horns of the righteous shall be exalted, ²⁶³²⁶³ “By the horns of the wicked is signified pride; by the horns of the righteous, on the other hand, is meant their power. Basil has remarked, that the horn is more exalted and more solid than any other part of the body to which it belongs; and that, at the same time, it supplies ornament to the head, and is also a weapon of defense. Hence it is put metaphorically both for strength and power, and also for pride.” — Cresswell. Here it is threatened that the power and honor of the wicked, which had been employed as the instruments of cruel wrong and oppression, would be destroyed, and their pride effectually humbled; while the righteous would be exalted to power and dignity. implies, that the children of God, by a blameless and holy life, acquire greater strength, and more effectually protect themselves than if it were their endeavor to advance their own interests by every species of wickedness.