How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.
How excellent ... O God! - Hebrew, yaaqaar (H3368), 'how precious,' etc.; like some costly treasure. David has here "God" ( 'Elohiym (H430)) instead of 'Lord,' or Yahweh (H3068), because the contrast is between God and man in general. How infinite is the interval between God and man! Yet the "loving-kindness" (Hebrew, chacdªkaa (H2617), goodness) of God bridges over the gulf, and enables frail man to have in God a never-failing shelter, (Psalms 8:1-9.)
The children of men ... shadow of thy wings. "The children of men" is the generic term for mankind. The class meant is the godly. "The shadow," in hot regions, is the natural term for protection. "Thy wings" is a figure from a mother-bird sheltering, with zealous solicitude, her young brood under her feathers (Deuteronomy 32:11; Matthew 23:37; Psalms 17:8).