Psalm 102:15-17 NKJV
So the nations shall fear the name of the Lord,
And all the kings of the earth Your glory.
16
For the Lord shall build up Zion;
He shall appear in His glory.
17
He shall regard the prayer of the destitute,
And shall not despise their prayer.
Spurgeon
Verse 15
“So the heathen shall fear the name of the LORD.” Mercy within the church is soon perceived by those without. When a candle is lit in the house, it shines through the window. When Zion rejoices in her God, the heathen been to reverence his name, for they hear of the wonders of his power, and are impressed thereby.
“And all the kings of the earth thy glory.” The restoration of Jerusalem was a marvel among the princes who heard of it, and its ultimate resurrection in days yet to come will be one of the prodigies of history. A church quickened by divine power is so striking an object in current history that it cannot escape notice, rulers cannot ignore it, it affects the Legislature, and forces from the great ones of the earth a recognition of the divine working. Oh that we might see in our days such a revival of religion that our senators and princes might be compelled to pay homage to the Lord, and own his glorious grace. This cannot be till the saints are better edified, and more fully builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. Internal prosperity is the true source of the church’s external influence.
Verse 16
“When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory.” As kings display their skill and power and wealth in the erection of their capitals, so would the Lord reveal the splendor of his attributes in the restoration of Zion, and so will he now glorify himself in the edification of his church. Never is the Lord more honorable in the eyes of his saints than when he prospers the church. To add converts to her, to train these for holy service, to instruct, illuminate, and sanctify the brotherhood, to bind all together in the bonds of Christian love, and to fill the whole body with the energy of the Holy Spirit—this is to build up Zion.
Verse 17
“And not despise their prayer.” He will not treat their pleas with contempt; he will incline his ear to hear, his heart to consider, and his hand to help. What comfort is here for those who account themselves to be utterly destitute; their abject want is here met with a most condescending promise. It is worthwhile to be destitute to be thus assured of the divine regard.
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Enduring Word
So the nations shall fear the name of the LORD: The restoration of mercy to Jerusalem is only the first part of a much larger work among the nations. God would so reveal Himself that all the kings of the earth would honor His name and glory. (Guzik)
He shall appear in His glory: The kings and kingdoms of the world honor Yahweh because He reveals Himself in His work toward Zion. His blessing and mercy to Jerusalem are a foretaste of His goodness to all the earth when He shall regard the prayer of the destitute.
i. “A wondering world will adore her delivering God.” (Maclaren)
ii. The prayer of the destitute: “Only the poorest of the people were left to sigh and cry among the ruins of the beloved city; as for the rest, they were strangers in a strange land, and far away from the holy place, yet the prayers of the captives and the forlorn offscourings of the land would be heard of the Lord.” (Spurgeon)
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Barnes
Verse 15
And all the kings of the earth thy glory – The sovereigns of the earth will be especially affected and impressed with thy majesty. If this refers to the return from the captivity at Babylon, then it means that that event would be particularly suited to impress the minds of the rulers of the world, as showing that God had all nations under his control; that he could deliver a captive people from the grasp of the mighty; that he was the friend of those who worshipped him, and that he would frown on oppression and wrong.
Verse 16
When the Lord shall build up Zion – The Septuagint, the Latin Vulgate, and Luther, vender this, “Because the Lord hath built up Zion.” This also is the most natural and correct translation of the Hebrew. The reference, however, may be to the future. The psalmist may throw himself into the future, and – standing there – he may describe things as they will appear then – as already done.
He shall appear in his glory – The idea is that the building up of Zion would be an occasion in which God would manifest his glory. In reference to the restoration of his people from bondage; in rebuilding Zion, then in ruins; in restoring the splendor of the place where he had been so long worshipped, he would display his true character as a God of glory, truth, power, and goodness. As applied to the church in general, this would mean that when God comes to revive religion, to visit his people, to recover them from their backslidings, to convert and save sinners, he appears in his appropriate character as the God of his people – as a glorious God. Then the perfections of his nature are most illustriously displayed; then he appears in his true character, as a God of mercy, grace, and salvation. There is no scene on earth where the character of God is more gloriously exhibited than in a revival of true religion.
Verse 17
He will regard the prayer – literally, “He looks upon,” or “he ‘turns himself’ to their prayer.” He does not any longer seem to turn away from them and disregard them. He shows by thus building up Zion that he does regard prayer; that he hears the supplications of his people. There is no higher proof that prayer is heard than that which is often furnished in a revival of pure religion. All such revivals, like that on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1 ff), are usually preceded, as that was Acts 1:13-14, by special prayer; in those revivals there are often most manifest and clear answers to prayer for the conversion of individuals; to prayer for a blessing on a preached gospel; to prayer for particular relatives and friends.
Of the destitute – literally, “of the poor.” The word – ערער ‛ar‛âr – occurs only here and in Jeremiah 17:6, where it is rendered “heath:” “He shall be like the ‘heath’ in the desert.” The word, according to its etymology, means “naked;” then, poor, stripped of everything, impoverished, wholly destitute. It would thus be eminently applicable to the poor exiles in Babylon; it is as applicable to sinners pleading with God, and to the people of God themselves, destitute of everything like self-righteousness, and feeling that they have nothing in themselves, but that they are wholly dependent on the mercy of God. Compare Revelation 3:17.
And not despise their prayer – Not treat it with contempt; not pass it by unheard. This is stated as one of the reasons why the nations would be struck with awe – that God, the infinite God, would hear the prayers of those who were so poor, so powerless, so friendless. There is, in fact, nothing more suited to excite wonder than that God does hear the prayer of poor, lost, sinful man.
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John Gill
He will regard the prayer of the destitute,…. Of the destitute of human help and support, protection and defense; as the church in the wilderness; of the “poor,” as the Syriac and Arabic versions, both in spirit and in purse; of the “humble,” as the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin: the word {c} signifies a low shrub or plant; it is rendered, the heath in the wilderness, Jeremiah 17:6 and designs the saints in their low and afflicted state, during the reign of antichrist, and while the witnesses prophesy in sackcloth; these are the elect that pray day and night, and give the Lord no rest till he establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth; and the prayers of these are regarded and looked to by the Lord; his eyes are upon and his ears are open to these praying ones; and all the glorious things which shall be done for the church of God will be in consequence of their prayers:
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Matthew Henry
The prayers of God’s people now seem to be slighted and no notice taken of them, but they will be reviewed and greatly encouraged (v. 17): He will regard the prayer of the destitute. It was said (v. 16) that God will appear in his glory, such a glory as kings themselves shall stand in awe of, v. 15. When great men appear in their glory they are apt to look with disdain upon the poor that apply to them, but the great God will not do so.
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Geneva Bible 1560
Psalm 102:15-17
15 Then the heathen shal fear the Name of the Lord, and all the Kings of the earth thy glorie,
16 When the Lord shal build up Zión, and shal appear m in his glorie,
17 And shal turn unto the praier of the desolate, and not despise their praier.
16 m That is, when he shall have drawn his Church out of the darkness of death.
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“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26 NKJV
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