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Many commentators see in Psalm 87: a reference to the days of Hezekiah,
when it was said of him "that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from
henceforth" (II Chron. 32: 23). Yet again, it has been assigned to the fulfillment of
the promise that the Lord would return unto Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem
(Zech. 8: 3), when the temple was once again built and when Zerubbabel was installed
as prince of the house of Judah. There is no reason to limit the Psalm to any one
particular period of rejoicing, so long as the rejoicing is definitely associated with the
choice of Zion.
Where the A.V. reads, "I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know
Me", the R.V. reads "I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon as among them that
know Me". This is in keeping with the prophecy of Isaiah: "And the Lord shall be
known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day" (Isa. 19: 21). Egypt,
Babylon, Philistia, Tyre and Ethiopia are addressed by the Lord as entering into the
glorious privilege of citizenship, "This man was born there". The glorious things that are
spoken of Zion, the city of God, include this all-embracive blessing of the nations. It will
be the highest dignity that any can attain, to be able to say, "I was born there".
The "bringing forth of children" is a figure of frequent use in the prophets, and as it is
physically impossible for all the nations specified to be born in Zion, its meaning must be
extended to cover the privilege of inclusion by citizenship:
"Shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her
children . . . . . I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a
flowing stream" (Isa. 66: 8-12).
The time of this travail is immediately before the second coming of the Lord, "The
bringing of sorrows" (Matt. 24: 8). These "sorrows" are not unto death, but pregnant
with life, for the word odin is translated "travail" in I Thess. 5: 3, and means "birth
pains", even as the verb odino is translated in Gal. 4: 19 "To travail in birth". The
prophetic day to which this looks is called in Matt. 19: 28, "The regeneration", the time
of rebirth for Israel and the nations. It is to this blessed fact that thought is directed in
Psalm 87: Primarily therefore the exultant cry, "All my springs are in Thee", refers
to Zion, the mother of all the nations, together with Israel, who shall enter in to the
kingdom of that day.
Having seen this, we are at liberty to extend the passage to cover the greater and more
glorious truth that the believer to-day, as at all times, can look up to the Lord and
exclaim, "All my springs are in THEE". It is this aspect of truth that we hope to develop
in the subsequent articles of this series.