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英文原文
This psalm is short and sweet; I doubt the reason why we sing it so often as we do is for the shortness of it; but, if we rightly understood and considered it, we should sing it oftener for the sweetness of it, especially to us sinners of the Gentiles, on whom it casts a very favourable eye. Here is, I. A solemn call to all nations to praise God, Ps 117:1. II. Proper matter for that praise suggested, Ps 117:2. We are soon weary indeed of well-doing if, in singing this psalm, we keep not up those pious and devout affections with which the spiritual sacrifice of praise ought to be kindled and kept burning.
1-2
All Nations Admonished to Praise God
万国当受劝赞美神
¹ 万国啊，你们都当赞美耶和华！万民哪，你们都当颂赞他！
² 因为他向我们大施慈爱，耶和华的诚实存到永远。你们要赞美耶和华！
本篇含有大量的福音。使徒为我们提供了一把钥匙（罗15:11），他在那里引用本篇为证，证明福音要传给外邦列国、并为外邦列国所接受——然而这事对犹太人却是大的绊脚石。这事既说在他们自己常常唱的诗篇里：「万国啊，你们都当赞美主；万民哪，你们都当颂赞他」，又何足使他们绊脚呢？有些犹太作者承认本篇是指着弥赛亚的国说的；更有一位幻想说它由两节组成，是表明在弥赛亚的日子神要被两种人荣耀——犹太人按摩西律法，外邦人按挪亚子孙的七条诫命——然而这两种人要成为同一个教会，正如这两节合成同一篇诗。此处我们有，
一、福音教会广阔的范围（诗117:1）。许多世代以来，惟独在犹大地神被人认识、神的名被人赞美。利未的子孙和以色列的后裔赞美他，其余的列国却「赞美金、银、木、石的」神（但5:4），而对又真又活的神则毫无公开的敬拜——至少我们所知没有。但此处「万国」都受召来赞美耶和华，这话不能应用于旧约时代，因为，（一）这呼召当时未以列国所能明白的语言赐给任何外邦国家，更不用说全部列国；（二）除非那地的人受割礼作犹太人，他们便不能与犹太人同赞神。但基督的福音奉命要传给万国，借着他那隔断的墙被拆毁，那些「远离的人」得以「亲近」。这就是隐藏在预言中多世之久的奥秘，至终在成就中显明：「外邦人在基督耶稣里，借着福音，得以同为后嗣」（弗3:3,6）。在此请观察，1. 谁当被接纳进入教会——「万国」与「万民」。原文的词与那指「外邦为什么争闹」、「万民为什么谋算」敌挡基督（诗2:1）所用的是相同的；那些曾作他国度之敌的人，要成为他甘心的子民。天国的福音要传给「天下万国」，「对万民作见证」（太24:14；可16:15）。万国都要受召，其中各国中都有受召有效的，他们要作门徒。2. 他们被接入教会是如何预言的——借着反复的呼召「颂赞他」。福音的消息既传到万国，便给了他们赞美神的理由；福音所设的常例要给他们赞美神的许可与机会；福音恩典的能力要给他们赞美神的心。神借他的话所邀请、又借他的灵所吸引来赞美他的人，便是有大福的——神便使他们成为他有名可赞的子民（耶13:11）。见启7:9,10。
二、福音恩典那不可测度的丰富，这正是我们赞美的内容（诗117:2）。在福音中，神那些著称的属性——他的怜悯和他的真理——本身最明亮地显出，对我们最舒适地显出；使徒在哪里引用本篇，便提到这两样，作为外邦人当因此荣耀神的两大缘由（罗15:8,9），即为「神的真理」和他的「怜悯」。我们这些享有福音的人有理由赞美主，1. 为他怜悯的大能：「他向我们大施慈爱」——原文之意为「强」；大有能力，足以赦免「大能的罪」（摩5:12），足以成就大能的拯救。2. 为他真理的永存：「耶和华的诚实存到永远」。福音传到外邦人中，对他们乃是怜悯——纯然的怜悯；这是慈爱胜过他们所当得的而向他们施行；在其中，「耶和华的真理」——他对列祖所应许的话——「存到永远」；因为虽然犹太人刚硬被弃，应许却应在相信的外邦人——亚伯拉罕属灵的后裔——身上。神的怜悯是我们一切安慰的源头，他的真理是我们一切盼望的根基，因此我们当为这两者赞美主。
英文原文
All Nations Admonished to Praise God
¹ O praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people.
² For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD.
There is a great deal of gospel in this psalm. The apostle has furnished us with a key to it (Ro 15:11), where he quotes it as a proof that the gospel was to be preached to, and would be entertained by, the Gentile nations, which yet was so great a stumbling-block to the Jews. Why should that offend them when it is said, and they themselves had often sung it, Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and laud him, all you people. Some of the Jewish writers confess that this psalm refers to the kingdom of the Messiah; nay, one of them has a fancy that it consists of two verses to signify that in the days of the Messiah God should be glorified by two sorts of people, by the Jews, according to the law of Moses, and by the Gentiles, according to the seven precepts of the sons of Noah, which yet should make one church, as these two verses make one psalm. We have here,
I. The vast extent of the gospel church, Ps 117:1. For many ages in Judah only was God known and his name praised. The sons of Levi and the seed of Israel praised him, but the rest of the nations praised gods of wood and stone (Da 5:4), while there was no devotion at all paid, at least none openly, that we know of, to the living and true God. But here all nations are called to praise the Lord, which could not be applied to the Old-Testament times, both because this call was not then given to any of the Gentile nations, much less to all, in a language they understood, and because, unless the people of the land became Jews and were circumcised, they were not admitted to praise God with them. But the gospel of Christ is ordered to be preached to all nations, and by him the partition-wall is taken down, and those that were afar off are made nigh. This was the mystery which was hidden in prophecy for many ages, but was at length revealed in the accomplishment, That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, Eph 3:3,6. Observe here, 1. Who should be admitted into the church—all nations and all people. The original words are the same that are used for the heathen that rage and the people that imagine against Christ (Ps 2:1); those that had been enemies to his kingdom should become his willing subjects. The gospel of the kingdom was to be preached to all the world, for a witness to all nations, Mt 24:14, Mk 16:15. All nations shall be called, and to some of all nations the call shall be effectual, and they shall be discipled. 2. How their admission into the church is foretold—by a repeated call to praise him. The tidings of the gospel, being sent to all nations, should give them cause to praise God; the institution of gospel-ordinances would give them leave and opportunity to praise God; and the power of gospel-grace would give them hearts to praise him. Those are highly favoured whom God invites by his word and inclines by his Spirit to praise him, and so makes to be to him for a name and a praise, Jer 13:11. See Re 7:9,10.
II. The unsearchable riches of gospel-grace, which are to be the matter or our praise, Ps 117:2. In the gospel, those celebrated attributes of God, his mercy and his truth, shine most brightly in themselves and most comfortably to us; and the apostle, where he quotes this psalm, takes notice of these as the two great things for which the Gentiles should glorify God (Ro 15:8,9), for the truth of God and for his mercy. We that enjoy the gospel have reason to praise the Lord, 1. For the power of his mercy: His merciful kindness is great towards us; it is strong (so the word signifies); it is mighty for the pardon of mighty sins (Am 5:12) and for the working out of a mighty salvation. 2. For the perpetuity of his truth: The truth of the Lord endures for ever. It was mercy, mere mercy, to the Gentiles, that the gospel was sent among them. It was merciful kindness prevailing towards them above their deserts; and in it the truth of the Lord, of his promise made unto the fathers, endures for ever; for, though the Jews were hardened and expelled, yet the promise took its effect in the believing Gentiles, the spiritual seed of Abraham. God's mercy is the fountain of all our comforts and his truth the foundation of all our hopes, and therefore for both we must praise the Lord.
本诗短而甘美;我怀疑我们之所以如此频繁地唱它,是因它篇幅短小;但我们若能正确领会并加以思量,就必因它的甘美而更加频繁地歌咏——尤其对我们这些外邦罪人而言,本诗以十分眷顾的目光看待我们。本篇内容如下:一、向万民发出的庄严呼召,要赞美神(诗117:1);二、为那赞美所提示的合宜内容(诗117:2)。我们若在唱这首诗时不能保持那敬虔虔诚的情感——就是那当作灵祭的赞美所当被点燃并持续燃烧的情感——那么我们在行善上实在是很快便厌倦了。