Psalms 32:6 - Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

For this That is, upon the encouragement of my example, and of thy great mercy vouchsafed to me, in answer to my humble confession and supplication; shall every one that is godly That is, truly penitent, and dreads thy wrath on account of his past sins, resolving to serve thee for the future; pray unto thee Namely, for the forgiveness of his sins, and for a testimony by thy Spirit in his heart, that thou hast forgiven him, Romans 8:16. In a time when thou mayest be found Hebrew, לעת מצא, legneth metzo, in the time of finding, namely, of finding thee; while there is room for repentance and reconciliation with thee. The Chaldee renders it, In an acceptable time, the Arabic, In a time of hearing. Thus Isaiah, Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. The meaning is, in a seasonable time, while God continues to offer grace and mercy to sinners. By this clause the psalmist seems to intimate the difference between the truly penitent or godly, who pray and cry earnestly to God for mercy in its season; and the wicked and impenitent, who will not do so till it be too late, and the season be lost. Mark this well, O reader, and see that thou lose no time, but seek the Lord speedily, Zechariah 8:21, lest death cut thee off, and then it will be too late to seek him. Remember, Now is the accepted time, behold, now is the day of salvation. Surely in the floods of great waters That is, in the time of great calamities, which are frequently compared to great waters; they shall not come nigh unto him So as to overwhelm or hurt him. Or, God will set him on a high and safe place, out of the reach of them; as he provided an ark for Noah when the deluge came, to which perhaps he here alludes. Those that have God nigh unto them, which all upright, penitent, praying people have, are so guarded, so advanced, that no waters, no, not great waters, no, not floods of them, can come nigh them to hurt them. As the temptations of the wicked one touch them not, 1 John 5:18, so neither do the troubles of this evil world; these fiery darts of both kinds drop short of them.