Psalm 123:2

Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2) Eyes.—As the eyes of the slave are fixed on the hand of the master or mistress, waiting for a sign or direction, so Israel waits, expectant of the hint of Divine interference to deliver from the tyrant. The picture will be so familiar to readers of Oriental stories as hardly to need actual illustration; but Savary’s (Letters on Egypt, p. 135, quoted by Perowne) description exactly reproduces the intention of the poet: “The slaves stand silent at the bottom of the rooms, with their hands crossed over their breasts. With their eyes fixed upon their master, they seek to anticipate every one of his wishes.” Comp. “Cave oculos a meis oculis quoquam demoveas” (Ter. Adelph. Ii. 1, 16).

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

123:1-4 Confidence in God under contempt. - Our Lord Jesus has taught us to look unto God in prayer as our Father in heaven. In every prayer a good man lifts up his soul to God; especially when in trouble. We desire mercy from him; we hope he will show us mercy, and we will continue waiting on him till it come. The eyes of a servant are to his master's directing hand, expecting that he will appoint him his work. And also to his supplying hand. Servants look to their master or their mistress for their portion of meat in due season. And to God we must look for daily bread, for grace sufficient; from him we must receive it thankfully. Where can we look for help but to our Master? And, further, to his protecting hand. If the servant is wronged and injured in his work, who should right him, but his master? And to his correcting hand. Whither should sinners turn but to him that smote them? They humble themselves under God's mighty hand. And lastly, to his rewarding hand. Hypocrites look to the world's hand, thence they have their reward; but true Christians look to God as their Master and their Rewarder. God's people find little mercy with men; but this is their comfort, that with the Lord there is mercy. Scorning and contempt have been, are, and are likely to be, the lot of God's people in this world. It is hard to bear; but the servants of God should not complain if they are treated as his beloved Son was. Let us then, when ready to faint under trials, look unto Jesus, and by faith and prayer cast ourselves upon the mercy of God.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters ... - Or, are to the hands of their masters; or, regard the hands of their masters. That is, we look to God with the same spirit of deference, dependence, and readiness to mark the will of God, which is evinced by servants in regard to their masters, and by maidens in regard to the will of a mistress. There has been some difference of view in regard to the meaning of this comparison. Some have supposed that the allusion is to the fact that servants, when in danger, look to their masters for protection; others, that they look to them for the supply of their needs; others, that when they have been guilty of an offence they look to them alone for pardon. See Rosenmuller, in loc. The true idea, however, seems to be, that they look to them with deference and respect; that they attentively mark every expression of their will; that they are ready to obey their commands on the slightest intimation of their wishes - standing in a waiting posture, with no will of their own - their own wills absorbed in the will of the master or the mistress.

The following extracts from Oriental travelers may illustrate the idea here: Maundrell (Reise von Aleppo nach Jerusalem, s. 13), speaking of an interview with the Pasha at Tripoli, says, "The servants all stood in great numbers with the utmost respect, and in profoundest silence, and served the guests with the utmost attention and respect." Pococke remarks that in Egypt the slaves stand in the profoundest silence at the end of the table, their hands laid cross-wise over one another, and that they mark with the deepest attention the slightest movement of their master, who conveys his wishes to them through signs and winks. Savary, in his Letters from Egypt (p. 135), says, "The slaves stand with their hands laid cross-wise over their breasts, silent, at the end of the hall. "Their eyes are directed to the master," and they are attentive to the slightest indication of his will." See other illustrations in Rosenmuller, Morgenland, ii. 109, 110. It is to such a custom as this that the psalmist refers; and the idea is, that his eyes were directed to God, in his troubles, in profound silence, and with deep attention, resembling that of servants waiting in stillness on their master, and catching the slightest intimation of his will - a movement of the head or hand - or anything which would indicate his pleasure.

Until that he have mercy upon us - We have nothing to do but wait. We have no other resource. We can do nothing if we turn away from him. Our only hope and expectation is there, and if we ever find relief, it must be there. The surest - the only - hope of relief is to wait on God; and it is the purpose of our souls to do this until we find help and deliverance. This is the attitude in which the earnest prayer in the next verse is offered.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. Deference, submission, and trust, are all expressed by the figure. In the East, servants in attending on their masters are almost wholly directed by signs, which require the closest observance of the hands of the latter. The servants of God should look (1) to His directing hand, to appoint them their work; (2) to His supplying hand (Ps 104:28), to give them their portion in due season; (3) to His protecting hand, to right them when wronged; (4) to His correcting hand (Isa 9:13; 1Pe 5:6; compare Ge 16:6); (5) to His rewarding hand.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Look unto the hand of their masters; either,

1. For supply of their wants, which comes from their masters’ hand; or,

2. For pity, the hand being the instrument whereby masters commonly correct their servants, and looking to the hand may express the posture of one supplicating for mercy; or rather,

3. For help and defence against their oppressors. For servants were unable to defend themselves, and were not allowed to wear defensive weapons, but expected and had protection kern their masters in case of injury. For this phrase of having one’s eyes towards another, both in this and other sacred books, constantly notes expectation and desire of help from them, as Psalm 25:15 69:3 Isaiah 17:7 Ezekiel 23:27, and oft elsewhere. And the phrase of God’s having mercy upon another, doth most commonly signify that act or effect of his mercy in helping and delivering him.

Until that he have mercy upon us; until he graciously help and save us.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters; and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress,.... To direct them in their work and business, to point out unto them what they shall do; which is often done by a motion of the hand of the master or mistress, or rap of their fingers without speaking (e), which the servant observes: or to help and assist them against their enemies, and protect them from them; servants unarmed, and molested in their masters' service, have no other to flee to for protection but them; so Aben Ezra: or to receive food and sustenance from them, as servants and maidens do, from their masters and mistresses, in whose service they are; see Proverbs 31:15; so Kimchi and Arama; the latter observes, that they have their food in a way of mercy, and not justice; contrary to what the apostle says, Colossians 4:1; or in order to receive their wages from them; see Job 7:2;

so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God; look unto him for direction in his service. Saints are servants, not of sin, nor of Satan, nor of men, but of the Lord; and not on the foot of creation only, but of redemption, and are made so by the grace of God; and they are willing to work, and are desirous to know what they should do; they inquire of God; they wait upon him, in his word and ordinances, for direction; and, being informed, do it with all their might, and follow the Lamb wheresoever he goes or directs them: and they look unto him for strength to assist them therein, being conscious of their own weakness; they apply to him, and wait upon him for strength, and do all they do in his name and strength; they look unto him for protection from all their enemies, which are many and mighty, and are stronger than they; and for food, both temporal and spiritual, and for all the necessaries and comforts both of a corporeal and spiritual life; and likewise for the recompence of reward, the reward of the inheritance, which is of grace, and not of debt. Joseph Kimchi thinks that the allusion is to servants, that look to the hand of their masters that correct and chastise them, and bear it patiently; and look to the hand that smites, till it shall have done, and mercy is shown them. And thus the saints look to the chastising hand of God, and humble themselves under it, and patiently endure it, till the Lord shall please to remove it from them; and this agrees with what follows:

until that he have mercy upon us; God is gracious and merciful; and he has his set time to have mercy on his people: and it becomes them to continue praying to him, and waiting on him, until he is pleased to show it to them; men should pray always, and not faint; they will find mercy in due time, Luke 18:1.

(e) Vid. Pignorium de Servis, p. 136. "Digiti crepantis signa novit eunuchus", Martial. l. 2. 82.

Geneva Study Bible

Behold, as the eyes of {a} servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us.

(a) He compares the condition of the godly, to servants who are destitute of all help, assuring that when all other help fails, God is always at hand and like himself.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. Behold, as the eyes of servants (look) unto the hand of their masters,

As the eyes of a maid (look) unto the hand of her mistress,

So our eyes (look) unto Jehovah our God, until he be gracious unto us.

As the servants or slaves of a household are dependent on the master and mistress of the household and look to them for the supply of all their needs, so Israel which is Jehovah’s household acknowledges its dependence on Him, and looks to Him to relieve its present distress. “The hand is the symbol of power, which rules the whole house” (Cheyne). This explanation is preferable to that which supposes the point of the comparison to lie in the intentness with which slaves watch for the slightest gesture of command from their master; or that which regards the hand as the hand of chastisement, and the look as the look of entreaty, appealing to the angry master to desist. With the last line cp. Isaiah 30:18.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 2. - Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters. Watch, i.e., for the slightest sign that he may give of his will. Such signs were usually given by some movement of the "hand." And as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress. Masters were waited on by male slaves; their wives by handmaids - both equally anxious to do their will, and therefore equally watchful of all the signs that indicated it. So our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that he have mercy upon us. We wait for the least sign that he is about to help and deliver us. Psalm 123:2

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The destinies of all men, and in particular of the church, are in the hand of the King who sits enthroned in the unapproachable glory of the heavens and rules over all things, and of the Judge who decides all things. Up to Him the poet raises his eyes, and to Him the church, together with which he may call Him "Jahve our God," just as the eyes of servants are directed towards the hand of their lord, the eyes of a maid towards the hand of her mistress; for this hand regulates the whole house, and they wait upon their winks and signs with most eager attention. Those of Israel are Jahve's servants, Israel the church is Jahve's maid. In His hand lies its future. At length He will take compassion on His own. Therefore its longing gaze goes forth towards Him, without being wearied, until He shall graciously turn its distress. With reference to the i of היּשׁבי, vid., on Psalm 113:1-9, Psalm 114:1-8. אדוניהם is their common lord; for since in the antitype the sovereign Lord is meant, it will be conceived of as plur. excellentiae, just as in general it occurs only rarely (Genesis 19:2, Genesis 19:18; Jeremiah 27:4) as an actual plural.