PRAYER FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE CHURCH. Maschil, a didactic poem, of Asaph, a prophetic psalm, foretelling some of the afflictions which would befall the Church of God, in the Old Testament as well as in the New.... [ Continue Reading ]
O God, why hast Thou cast us off forever? this being the conclusion reached by the psalmist in considering the condition of the spiritual Israel as he saw it in spirit. WHY DOTH THINE ANGER SMOKE, the smoking of the nostrils as with an inner fire being the picture frequently used in the Hebrew langu... [ Continue Reading ]
Remember Thy congregation, not only thinking of it in mercy, but showing His favor in deeds of kindness, WHICH THOU HAST PURCHASED OF OLD, which had become His possession by the deliverance from the serfdom of Egypt; THE ROD OF THINE INHERITANCE, the tribe or nation of His possession, WHICH THOU HAS... [ Continue Reading ]
Lift up Thy feet, in long and hurried steps, UNTO THE PERPETUAL DESOLATIONS, the ruins of His spiritual Temple; EVEN ALL THAT THE ENEMY HATH DONE WICKEDLY IN THE SANCTUARY, the desecrations of the Old Testament being due principally to idolatry, those of the New Testament consisting in false doctrin... [ Continue Reading ]
Thine enemies roar in the midst of Thy congregations, in the place where God revealed Himself in the assembled congregation in His Word; THEY SET UP THEIR ENSIGNS FOR SIGNS, heathen customs and ceremonies taking the place of the forms of Worship instituted or approved by God. That this was done in t... [ Continue Reading ]
A man was famous according as he had lifted up axes upon the thick trees, or, He, the enemy, shows himself, makes known himself, as one who raises axes on high in the thicket of the woods;... [ Continue Reading ]
but now they break down the carved work thereof, the costly and artistic; paneling of the Temple, AT ONCE WITH AXES AND HAMMERS, in deliberate and ruthless vandalism, exactly as the present-day enemies attempt to desecrate the spiritual temple of the Lord.... [ Continue Reading ]
They have cast fire into Thy sanctuary, deliberately burning the house of Jehovah; THEY HAVE DEFILED, BY CASTING DOWN, THE DWELLING-PLACE OF THY NAME, where the Lord revealed Himself to His people in the Word, TO THE GROUND, the profanation of all things holy being the delight of the Lord's enemies... [ Continue Reading ]
They said in their hearts, Let us destroy them together, bringing the believers into subjection with cruelty and violence; THEY HAVE BURNED UP ALL THE SYNAGOGS OF GOD IN THE LAND, all the places of assembly, whether the schools of prophets are here meant or the synagogs proper as they existed after... [ Continue Reading ]
We see not our signs, the customs of regular worship had been discontinued; THERE IS NO MORE ANY PROPHET, this lament containing a true description not only of the last centuries of the pre-Christian era, but also of many other periods of the Church's life; NEITHER IS THERE AMONG US ANY THAT KNOWETH... [ Continue Reading ]
O God, how long shall the adversary reproach? sneeringly state that Israel had been forsaken by God. SHALL THE ENEMY, by such jeering remarks, BLASPHEME THY NAME, the entire revelation of the power and attributes of Jehovah, FOREVER?... [ Continue Reading ]
Why withdrawest Thou Thy hand, even Thy right hand? this being the symbol of God's almighty power. PLUCK IT OUT OF THY BOSOM, where it seemed that the Lord had hidden it; He should show His might, the psalmist pleads, by sending destruction upon the enemies.... [ Continue Reading ]
For God is my King of old, in spite of the gloominess of the present outlook the poet clings to this trust, WORKING SALVATION IN THE MIDST OF THE EARTH, that is, throughout the habitable world He makes known and works His redemption.... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou didst divide the sea by Thy strength, cleaving the Red Sea asunder for the passage of Israel; THOU BRAKEST THE HEADS OF THE DRAGONS IN THE WATERS, the expression referring to the Egyptian tyrants.... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou brakest the heads of leviathan, the crocodile, the most powerful animal of Egypt, IN PIECES AND GAVEST HIM TO BE MEAT TO THE PEOPLE INHABITING THE WILDERNESS, food for the wilderness dwellers, the wild beasts of the desert consuming the carcasses of the Egyptians after their overthrow in the Re... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou didst cleave the fountain and the flood, in giving the Israelites water out of the rock, Exodus 17:5; Numbers 20:11; THOU DRIEDST UP MIGHTY RIVERS, the reference being chiefly to the passage of Jordan, Joshua 3:13.... [ Continue Reading ]
The day is Thine, the night also is Thine, He, as the great Sovereign, has fixed the laws governing their course; THOU HAST PREPARED THE LIGHT AND THE SUN, the light-bodies being His creatures and subject to Him.... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou hast set all the borders of the earth, not only by dividing it from the sea, but also by fixing the natural boundaries of nations; THOU HAST MADE SUMMER AND WINTER, the seasons also being His creatures and therefore subject to His command. Thus the absolute, limitless power of God is described,... [ Continue Reading ]
Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached, O Lord, and that the foolish people, the enemies gone mad with their rejection of Jehovah, HAVE BLASPHEMED THY NAME, v. 10.... [ Continue Reading ]
O deliver not the soul of thy turtle-dove, the individual believer and the entire Church being included in this designation on account of the manner in which the dove seeks refuge when danger is near, UNTO THE MULTITUDE OF THE WICKED, the band which is so active in planning its destruction. FORGET N... [ Continue Reading ]
Have respect unto the covenant, regarding His promise to uphold the fellowship between Himself and His people; FOR THE DARK PLACES OF THE EARTH, the eaves and hiding-places of the persecuted believers, ARE FULL OF THE HABITATIONS OF CRUELTY, since it happened repeatedly in the history of the Church... [ Continue Reading ]
O let not the oppressed return ashamed, on account of the Lord's refusal to give him the assistance he craved; LET THE POOR AND NEEDY, the afflicted members of His Church, PRAISE THY NAME, thanking Him for the deliverance which He was requested to provide.... [ Continue Reading ]
Arise, O God, plead Thine own cause, for it was, after all, Jehovah's cause which was in danger on account of the action of the enemies; REMEMBER HOW THE FOOLISH MAN REPROACHETH THEE DAILY, Jehovah's own honor thereby being assailed.... [ Continue Reading ]
Forget not the voice of Thine enemies, their sneering blasphemies; THE TUMULT OF THOSE THAT RISE UP AGAINST THEE, in open rebellion against His sovereign rule, INCREASETH CONTINUALLY, rising up threateningly against the throne of the Most High. That is a prayer which is bound to have its effect, whe... [ Continue Reading ]