Psalms 24:4

Psalms 24:4

Our hands are the instruments by which we accomplish anything and make ourselves useful, and hence to have "clean hands" means to do honest and good things. I shall tell you about several sorts of hands.

I. Dishonest hands. There is every reason why Christians of every rank in life should respond devoutly when the Eighth Commandment is read in church, "Lord, have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep this law."

II. Meddlesome and mischievous hands. The habit which many children and grown people have of touching every curious thing they see is sometimes followed by serious consequences.

III. Cruel hands. You could not begin to count the birds' nests which cruel hands destroy nor the barbarous acts committed by them in a single day. To tease or torture dumb animals, which can do nothing to defend themselves, is always the sign of a coward.

IV. Murderous hands. "Murder will out," is an oldproverb, and it generally proves a true one.

V. Beautiful and useful hands. We should often think of one of the directions given us by God Himself: "Wash you; make you clean." It is the Holy Spirit who alone can do this for us. The highest kind of strength is the strength to do right, and this strength must come from God. The more often and the more earnestly that we ask Him for it, the stronger we shall be.

J. N. Norton, The King's Ferry Boat,p. 41.

References: Psalms 24:4. Spurgeon, Evening by Evening,p. 187. Psalms 24:6. Expositor,3rd series, vol. v., p. 310. Psalms 24:7. A. Watson, Sermons for Sundays, Festivals, and Fasts,2nd series, vol. ii., p. 255.