Psalms 51:18

“Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion, etc.] This verse, and (<195119>Psalm 51:19), are thought, by a Spanish Rabbi mentioned by Aben Ezra, to have been added by one of the holy men that lived in the time of the Babylonish captivity; though rather it is thought, by the latter, to be written by David, under a spirit of prophecy, concerning, times to come; and so Kimchi thinks they are prophetic of future things; of the destruction of the first and second temple, and of the acceptableness of sacrifices in the times of the Messiah: and by Zion is meant the church, under the Gospel dispensation, (<581222>Hebrews 12:22 <661401>Revelation 14:1); and the “good” prayed for includes all the good and…”

“Do good, &c.--Visit not my sin on Thy Church. build . . . walls--is to show favor; compare Psa 89:40, for opposite form and idea.”

“Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion - From himself - his deep sorrow, his conscious guilt, his earnest prayer for pardon and salvation - the psalmist turns to Zion, to the city of God, to the people of the Lord. These, after all, lay nearer to his heart than his own personal salvation; and to these his thoughts naturally turned even in connection with his own deep distress. Such a prayer as is here offered he would also be more naturally led to offer from the remembrance of the dishonor which he had brought on the cause of religion, and it was natural for him to pray that his own misconduct might not have the effect of hindering the cause of God in the world. The psalms often take this…”

“Good pleasure - Thy free and rich mercy. Build - Perfect the walls and buildings of that city, and especially let the temple be built, notwithstanding my sins. Next: Psalms Chapter 52”

“51:18-19 rebuild the walls of Jerusalem: These verses were probably added as a prayer for national restoration after the Exile (see Pss 42–43); the entire community in exile identified with the spirit of the psalm.”

“Do: Psa 25:22, Psa 102:16, Psa 122:6-9, Psa 137:5, Psa 137:6; Isa 62:1, Isa 62:6, Isa 62:7; Jer 51:50; Co2 11:28, Co2 11:29 thy: Luk 12:32; Eph 1:5, Eph 1:9; Phi 2:13; Th2 1:11 build: Neh 2:17; Isa 58:12; Dan 9:25; Mic 7:11; Zac 2:5 Psalms 51:19”

“From this spiritual sacrifice, well-pleasing to God, the Psalm now, in vv. 20f., comes back to the material sacrifices that are offered in a right state of mind; and this is to be explained by the consideration that David's prayer for himself here passes over into an intercession on behalf of all Israel: Do good in Thy good pleasure unto Zion. את־ may be a sign of the accusative, for היטיב (הטיב) does take the accusative of the person ( Job 24:21); but also a preposition, for as it is construed with ל and עם, so also with את in the same signification ( Jer 18:10; Jer 32:41). זבח־צדק are here, as in Psa 4:6; Deu 33:19, those sacrifices which not merely as regards their outward character, but…”