is gone "to prepare a place for us, shall come again, and take us to himself, that where he is we may be also!"

PSALM XCII.

ARGUMENT.

The title of this Psalm is "A Psalm or Song, for the Sabbath-day." It teacheth, 1-5. the duty, time, and manner of giving thanks for the works and dispensations of God. Thoughtless men are admonished, 6. to reflect upon the final issue of all these works and dispensations; namely, 7-9. the utter perdition of the ungodly, and, 10-14. the exaltation of the church in Christ Jesus, 15. to the praise and glory of God most high.

"1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High: 2. To show forth thy loving-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night; 3. Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp and with a solemn sound."

"Thanksgiving" is the duty, and ought to be the delight, of a Christian. It is his duty, as being the least return he can make to his great Benefaotor: it ought to be his delight, for it is that of angels, and will be that of every grateful heart, whether in heaven or on earth. The "mercy" of God in promising salvation, and his "faithfulness" in accomplishing it, are inexhaustible subjects for "morning and evening" praises; every instru ment should be strung, and every voice tuned to celebrate them, until day and night come to an end. But more especially should this be done on the "sabbath-day;" which, when so employed, affords a lively resemblance of that eternal sabbath, to be hereafter kept by the redeemed in the kingdom of God.

"4. For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands."

A prospect of creation, in the vernal season, fallen as it is, inspires the mind with a joy which no words can express. But how doth the regene rate soul exult and triumph at beholding that" work" of God's "hand," whereby he hath created all things anew in Christ Jesus! If we can be pleased with such a world as this, where sin and death have fixed their habitation; shall we not much rather admire those other heavens, and that other earth, wherein dwell righteousness and life? What are we to think of the palace, since even the prison is not without its charms!

"5. O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. 6. A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this."

Glorious are the works, profound the counsels, marvellous the dispensations of God, in nature, in providence, in grace. But all are lost to the man void of spiritual discernment; who, like his fellow "brutes," is bowed down to the earth, and knoweth no pleasures but those of sense. Here he hath chosen his paradise, and set up his tabernacle: not considering, that his tabernacle must shortly be taken down, and he must remove hence for

ever.

7. When the wicked spring as the grass, when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever. 8, But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore."

It is not improbable, that these verses should be connected with that preceding, thus "A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this;" namely, that "When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be de stroyed for ever:" they are only nourishing themselves like senseless cattle in plentiful pastures, for the approaching day of slaughter, He who is ignorant of the final issue of things, who attendeth not to his eternal interest,

he is, in scripture language, "the brutish man," and the "fool," who knoweth not the works, neither understandeth the designs of Heaven. When the "grass" hath attained to its most flourishing estate, and all the flowers of the field are in perfect beauty, then the mower entereth with his scythe. What a beautiful and instructive emblem is here held forth to us? what a forcible admonition to trust only in him, who, without "variableness or shadow of turning," is "most high for evermore !"

"9. For lo, thine enemies, O LORD, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. 10. But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be, or, I am, anointed with fresh oil."

"But

The "workers of iniquity" are the "enemies of Jehovah," and will be scattered by the breath of his displeasure, as grass, after it is cut down, dried up and withered, is driven away by the whirlwind of heaven. my horn," saith the Psalmist, (it is likely in the person of Messiah,)" my horn," that is, the strength and power of my kingdom, "shalt thou exalt like the horn of the unicorn,"* like the power of the strongest creatures, to which that of states and empires is often compared: "I shall be,” or, “I am anointed with fresh oil;" I am appointed and consecrated king by the holy unction. Christians have "an unction from the Holy One;" by which they are enabled to subdue their spiritual enemies; they reign over their passions and affections; they are exalted in the Redeemer; they are "made unto their God kings and priests," 1 John ii. 20. Rev. v. 10.

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11. Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies; and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me.'

The words," my desire," are twice inserted by our translators. But would it not be better, if we were to supply the ellipsis in this manner: "Mine eye shall behold the fall of mine enemies; and mine ear shall hear the destruction of the wicked, that rise up against me." The sense of the verse is plain. It is intended to express an assurance of faith, an humble confidence in the promises of God, that our efforts shall at length be crowned with victory over everything which resisteth and opposeth itself; and that the day is coming, when we shall view all the enemies of our salvation dead at our feet.

12. The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon."

The momentary prosperity of the wicked was compared above to the transient verdure of "grass." "The durable felicity of the righteous is here likened to the lasting strength and beauty of palms and cedars. But chiefly is the comparison applicable to that Just One, the King of Righteousness, and Tree of Life; eminent and upright; ever verdant and fragrant; under the greatest pressure and weight of sufferings, still ascending towards heaven; affording both fruit and protection; incorruptible and immortal. "I sat down," saith the church," under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste," Song ii. 3.

"13. Those that he planted in the house of the LORD, shall flourish in the courts of our God."

Believers are styled by Isaiah, "Trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah," ch. lxi. 3. They are planted by the living waters of comfort, "in the house of God;" where, under the means of grace, they "flourish" in the hope of glory; "fenced and enclosed by the discipline and orders of the church, and by the consequent favour and protection of Heaven; their verdure is conspicuous, and ever constant, whether in the summer of prosperity, or the winter of adversity: their actions and principles are ever upright and fair; yea, their very leaf exhales a delightful perfume, by a holy example and conversation; their affections and desires are ever ascend

Heb., an eastern animal of the "stag" or "deer" kind, remarkable for its height, strength, and fierceness.

ing towards the noblest and most sublime objects, the things that are above, the glorious things of heaven.”*

"14. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing."

Happy the man whose goodness is always progressive, and whose virtues increase with his years; who loseth not, in multiplicity of worldly cares or pleasures, the holy fervours of his first love, but goeth on burning and shining more and more to the end of his days. The church, like her representative Sarah, is now "well stricken in years;" but we hope that, like her, she will still bring forth fruit in her old age;" we look for many more "children of promise" to be born unto Christ, both from among the Jews and Gentiles.

15. To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him."

The fruit brought forth in the church redounds to the glory of God, by whom the trees, in this his new paradise, were planted; it shows to all the world, that he is just and upright in his dealings; that he is true to his promises; immoveable as a "rock" in his counsels; determined to punish the wicked, and to reward the good; so that when his proceedings shall come to be unfolded at the last day, it will appear to men and angels that "there is no unrighteousness in him.”

EIGHTEENTH DAY.-EVENING PRAYER.

PSALM XCIII.

ARGUMENT.

The Jews acknowledge, that the kingdom of Messiah is prophesied of in this Psalm, and in all those which follow, to the hundredth. 1, 2. The church celebrates the majesty, power, and glory, of the eternal King; 3. describes the danger she is often in from persecutions, &c. but, 4. strengtheneth herself in God her Saviour, whose house, 5. ought to be, like himself, full of truth and holiness.

"1. The LORD reigneth; he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength; wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is established, that it cannot be moved."

From the beginning, God, as Creator, was Sovereign Lord of the uni verse. He was also formerly, in a more especial manner, King of Israel. But since that time, a new and spiritual kingdom hath been erected by Jesus Christ, as Redeemer, whom the church now celebrates, and whose praises she sings continually. Risen from the dead, and ascended into heaven, the Lord Jesus reigneth, and shall reign, "till he hath put all enemies under his feet," 1 Cor. xv. 25. By the glorification of his human nature, he is "clothed with majesty: All power is given unto him in heaven and in earth;" Matt. xxviii. 18. so that he is girded with strength; and through that strength, he hath “established" the new "world," that is to say, his church, that it "cannot be moved," or subverted, by all the powers of earth and hell.

2. Thy throne is established of old: thou art from everlasting." Earthly thrones are temporary; they are set up and cast down again, neither is any trust to be reposed in them. But the throne of Christ is eternal and unchangeable. Constituted before the foundation of the world, it is to endure when no traces of such a system having once existed, shall any more be found.

* Essay on the Proper Lessons, by Mr. Wogan, vol. iii. p. 49.

"3. The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves. 4. The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea."

In the first of these verses, the church appears like a ship in a stormy sea, to which she is often compared. Persecutions and afflictions are those "floods," those "waves" of this troublesome world, which threaten every moment to overwhelm and sink her. With a fearful and desponding tone of voice, therefore, she crieth out, “The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves!" But immediately she strengtheneth and comforteth herself in the Lord her God: "The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than mighty waves of the sea:" He can say to sorrows and temptations, as he doth to the waters of the ocean, "Peace, be still; hitherto shall ye come, but no farther;" and his word is with equal power in both cases.

"5. Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever."

God's "testimonies" are the promises made in Scripture to the church, that he will be with her during the afflictions which befall her here below, and will in time deliver her out of all her troubles. These "testimonies are very sure;" these promises do not, they cannot, fail. "Holiness,"

therefore, which consisteth in obedience and patience, "becometh," is the proper ornament, grace, and beauty, of "his house," and of Christians, those living stones that compose it. Sacred and inviolable is the word of our King; sacred and inviolable should be the loyalty of his subjects.

PSALM XCIV.

ARGUMENT.

The Psalmist, complaining of corrupt and troublous times, in the person of the church, 1-4. prayeth for the downfall of prosperous wickedness; 5, 6. he describeth the cruelty, and 7-11. reproveth the atheistical folly of those who persecute God's people; 12, 13. he extolleth the blessedness of the persecuted, if they are endued with faith and patience, inasmuch as, 14, 15. the Divine promise and their future reward are certain; he therefore, 16-19. throweth himself wholly upon God, whose mercies never fail, who, 20, 21. cannot be on the side of iniquity, but, 22, 23. will preserve his saints, and destroy their enemies.

"1. O LORD God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself. 2. Lift up thyself, thou Judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud."

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The church, however unjustly oppressed and afflicted, remembereth that vengeance belongeth" not to her, had she the power to inflict it, but "to God" only, who hath said, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," Rom. xii 19. To him, therefore, she maketh her supplication, that he would manifest his glory in her salvation; that he would ascend the tribunal, as " Judge of the earth," try her cause, and avenge her of her insolent and cruel per

secutors.

"3. LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? 4. How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?"

The "triumphs" of wickedness, the "hard speeches,” taunts, and scoffs of infidelity, against Christ, and all who belong to him, are a continual grief of heart to the faithful in the world, who desire nothing so much as to see the empire of sin at an end, and the kingdom of righteousness esta blished. But for this great event they must wait with patience, until the time appointed by the Father, when the iniquities of the world and the suf ferings of the church shall be full. "I saw under the altar," saith the wellbeloved John, "the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and

for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them, and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also, and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled," Rev. vi. 9, &c.

"5. They break in pieces thy people, O LORD, and afflict thine heritage. 6. They slay the widow and stranger, and murder the fatherless."

Some instances of cruelty, exercised by the enemies against the "people and heritage" of God, are here specified. "Widows, strangers, and orphans," are destitute of the help and protection afforded by husbands, friends, and fathers. Christ is become a husband to the church, a father to her children, and the only friend to both in time of need. Else were we all in the state of strangers and orphans, exposed with our widowed mother to the unrelenting malice and fury of the great oppressor and murderer.

7. Yet they say, The LORD shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it. 8. Understand, ye brutish among the people; and ye fools, when will ye be wise? 9. He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see? 10. He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know ? Or, He that instructeth the nations, shall he not rebuke; even he that teacheth man knowledge?"

The Psalmist informeth us that men are encouraged in their injustice and villany by a persuasion, that God doth not behold or regard what they do to his people. The absurdity of such a conceit is shown from these considerations; that it is God who bestoweth on man the powers of seeing and hearing, and therefore that he himself must needs be possessed of those powers in the highest perfection; that it is God who hath instructed the world by his revelations in religious knowledge, and consequently, without all doubt, he cannot be ignorant of the use and abuse which men make of that his unspeakable gift.

11. The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity." So far is God from being a stranger to the actions, that he is privy to the first "thoughts" of men, from whence those actions flow; he is acquainted with all their counsels against his church, and knoweth them to be vain as the imagination that he is ignorant of them. The wicked can no more escape the hand, than they can elude the eye, of Heaven.

12. Blessed is the man whom thou chasteneth, or, instructeth, O Lord, and teacheth him out of thy law; 13. That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked."

Since, therefore, the schemes of the adversary are vain, and the counsels of Jehovah shall infallibly stand, happy is the man, who having learned from the Scriptures of truth, the lessons of faith and patience, enjoys tranquillity of mind in time of trouble, while destruction is preparing for the impenitent. Then, when "the days of adversity" are over, shall pain and sorrow take a final leave of the righteous, to go and dwell with the wicked to eternal ages. The former shall enter into the rest and joy of their Lord, the latter into the fire prepared originally for the devil and his angels.

"14. For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance. 15. But judgment shall return unto righteousness; and all the upright in heart shall follow it."

The faith and patience of the saints are built upon the foundation of God's promise not to "cast off and forsake," however he may chasten and correct, his "people and inheritance." At a fit time, "judgment shall return to righteousness," which it might seem to have forsaken: iniquitous oppressors shall not meet with the punishment they have deserved, and the faithful shall experience the promised redemption. For thus Dr. Hammond renders and expounds the last clause of the two verses under consi