Psalm 99:8 NKJV
“Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God.” A sweet title and a cheering fact. Our covenant God in a very special manner heard his three servants when they pleaded for the people.
“Thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.” He forgave the sinners, but he slew their sins. Some apply this verse to Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, and remind us that each of these fell into a fault and received chastisement. Of Samuel they assert that, for having set up his sons as his successors, he was compelled to submit to the anointing of Saul as king, which was a great grief to him: this is to our mind a very doubtful statement and leads us to abandon the interpretation altogether. We believe that the passage refers to the nation which was spared through the intercession of these three holy men, but yet was severely chastened for its transgressions. In answer to the cry of Moses the tribes lived on, but the then-existing generation could not enter Canaan: Aaron’s golden calf was broken, though the fire of the Lord did not consume the people; and Israel smarted under the harsh government of Saul, though at Samuel’s request its murmurings against the theocratic rule of their fathers’ God was not visited with pestilence or famine. So to forgive sin as at the same time to express abhorrence of it, is the peculiar glory of God, and is best seen in the atonement of our Lord Jesus. Reader, are you a believer? Then your sin is forgiven you, but so surely as you are a child of God the rod of paternal discipline will be laid upon you if your walk be not close with God. “You only have I known of all the nations of the earth, therefore I will punish you for your iniquities.” (Spurgeon)
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You were to them God-Who-Forgives: God answered these men (and others) who sought Him. He revealed Himself to them as the God-Who-Forgives. Significantly, even these men of whom it was said, they kept His testimonies (Psalm 99:7) need this revelation of the God-Who-Forgives. (Guzik)
Though You took vengeance on their deeds: It isn’t clear if the ones referred to here are the priests mentioned in Psalm 99:6 (Moses, Aaron, and Samuel) or if it is referring to the people they prayed for (Israel as a whole). Most commentators regard their deeds as referring to Israel’s deeds, but it is also true that Moses, Aaron, and Samuel were each disciplined by God in some way. (Guzik)
i. “God spared them, but showed his displeasure at their misdoings. He chastised, but did not consume them. This is amply proved in the history of this people.” (Clarke)
ii. “Through all the history of His people He has been faithful, both in forgiveness and in vengeance, and that because He is holy. Therein is the reason for worship. Herein also is the reason for trembling.” (Morgan)
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Thou answeredst them, O Lord our God – The reference here is to God as “our” God; that is, the language used by those who now worship him is designed to give encouragement in approaching his throne. The God that “we” worship is the same that “they” worshipped; and as he answered them, we may feel assured that he will answer us.
Thou wast a God that forgavest them – They were not perfect; they were sinners; they often offended thee, and yet thou didst answer them, and show them mercy.
Though thou tookest vengeance – Though thou didst manifest thy displeasure at their misconduct; though thou in thy judgments didst show that thou wast displeased with them; nevertheless thou didst answer them. Sinners as they were, and often as thou didst show thy displeasure at their conduct, yet thou didst hear their prayers and bless them.
Of their inventions – The Hebrew word denotes work, deed, doing, conduct. It means here what they did – their sins. There is no allusion to any special art or “cunning” in what they did – as if they had “invented” or found out some new form of sin. (Barnes)
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Thou answeredst them, O Lord our God,…. This is repeated to show the certainty of it, and to encourage the people of God, in all ages, to pray unto him:
thou wast a God that forgavest them; even Moses, Aaron, and Samuel; for, though they were great and good men, they did not live without sin, and stood in need of pardoning grace and mercy, which they had; or rather the people for whom they prayed: so the Targum (interpretation), “O God, thou wast forgiving thy people for them;” that is, through their prayers; see Numbers 14:19,
though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions; their sins, which are the inventions of men, Ecclesiastes 7:29. Kimchi and others interpret this of the inventions, designs, and practices of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, against Moses and Aaron, Numbers 16:32 but though God took vengeance on them, it does not appear that he forgave their iniquities; wherefore it is best to understand this either of the sins of Moses and Aaron themselves, which, though pardoned, God took vengeance of, and showed his displeasure at, by not suffering them to go into the land of Canaan, Numbers 20:10, or else of the sins of the Israelites, who murmured upon the report of the spies; and though they were pardoned at the intercession of Moses, yet so far vengeance was taken upon them, that none of them were suffered to enter the land of Canaan; but their carcasses fell in the wilderness, Numbers 14:19, and thus, though God forgives the iniquities of his people, for the sake of his Son, yet he takes vengeance of them on him, their surety; on whom they have been laid and borne, and who has not been spared in the least; but has bore the whole wrath and vengeance of God due to sin; and besides, though he pardons his people, yet he chastises them for their sins, and shows his fatherly displeasure at them. (Gill)
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The good offices they did to Israel. They interceded for the people, and for them also they obtained many an answer of peace. Moses stood in the gap, and Aaron between the living and the dead; and, when Israel was in distress, Samuel cried unto the Lord for them, 1 Sa. 7:9. This is here referred to (v. 8): “Thou answeredst them, O Lord our God! and, at their prayer, thou wast a God that forgavest the people they prayed for; and, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions, yet thou didst not cut them off from being a people, as their sin deserved.” “Thou wast a God that wast propitious for them (so Dr. Hammond), for their sakes, and sparedst the people at their request, even when thou wast about to take vengeance of their inventions, that is, when thy wrath was so highly provoked against them that it was just ready to break in upon them, to their utter overthrow.” (Henry)
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Geneva Bible 1560
Psalms 99:8
8 Thou heardest them, ô Lord our God: thou wast a favorable God unto them, though thou didest take vengeance for e their inventions.
e For the more liberally that God deals with his people, the more does he punish them that abuse his benefits.
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