_Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord._ MORAL LAW I. There is a Divine moral law for the regulation of moral life. The Creator has given a law to every creature He has made, and to every creature its own law. This law Christ reduced to two primary obligations--righ... [ Continue Reading ]
_Blessed are they that keep His testimonies, and that seek Him with the whole heart._ THE BEST PURSUIT I. The pursuit specified. 1. The object proposed. They “seek” God--His enlightening truth--His pardoning mercy--His sanctifying grace--His indwelling presence--His communicable fulness--and His... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou hast commanded us to keep Thy precepts diligently._ REASONS FOR DILIGENCE IN OBEYING GOD In worldly affairs no weighty thing can be done without diligence; far less in spiritual. For three causes should we keep the commandments of the Lord with diligence: first, because our adversary, that s... [ Continue Reading ]
_O that my ways were directed to keep Thy statutes! _ VIRTUOUS SOLICITUDE A solicitude to perform our duty, to practise holiness at all times, and to make a constant progress in it, is an essential ingredient in a virtuous temper, a necessary qualification of our obedience, and a powerful means of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all Thy commandments._ A CLEAR CONSCIENCE We are not under the law, but under grace, yet are we not lawless, since we have become servants of God. Nay, but we are under another law, which works upon us after another fashion. The child may be q... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will praise Thee with uprightness of heart._ THE DUTY OF THANKFULNESS Thankfulness is a duty wherein we are all obliged to the Lord. It is good in regard of the equity of it. Since the Lord gives us good things, shall not we give Him praises again? especially seeing the Lord is content so to pa... [ Continue Reading ]
_They also do no iniquity: they walk in His ways._ NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE GOODNESS I. Negative goodness. “They do no iniquity.” In their external conduct, and to the eye of society, they appear faultless. 1. It is socially valuable. He who in society practically respects the social rights of other... [ Continue Reading ]
_Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?_ by taking heed thereto according to Thy Word. HOW A YOUNG MAN MAY CLEANSE HIS WAY I. This is the great practical problem for life. It is more especially the question for young people. 1. You are under special temptations not to ask it. There are s... [ Continue Reading ]
_With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy commandments._ MAN’S DISTINGUISHING CAPACITY AND FEARFUL LIABILITY I. Man’s distinguishing capacity. What is that? Power to wander from the Divine law. He can bound from his orbit, he has done so, is doing so. Sublimely awful po... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee._ GOD’S WORD IN THE HEART Such was David’s wise precaution against temptation, but we have a far higher example of the use of such precaution in the history of the temptation of our Lord. The holy Redeemer made his appeal to the W... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will meditate in Thy precepts, and have respect unto Thy ways._ A THREEFOLD INTERNAL ACTION OF THE SOUL ABOUT THE WORD These two verses present to us a threefold internal action of David’s soul towards the Word of God: first, meditation; secondly, consideration; thirdly, delectation; every one o... [ Continue Reading ]
_Deal bountifully with Thy servant, that I may live, and keep Thy Word._ HUMAN LIFE Two facts suggested concerning human life: I. That its continuance depends upon Divine mercy. No creature has a right to live. All finite life is a gift; especially is this the case with human life, that has outra... [ Continue Reading ]
_Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law._ MORAL BLINDNESS Moral blindness is the worst kind of blindness. I. Physical blindness has its compensations. Other faculties and organs generally become so keen and active as to make up for the loss of the eye. The imaginati... [ Continue Reading ]
_I am a stranger in the earth: hide not Thy commandments from me._ SONGS FOR THE WAY (with verse 54):--Two cries ascend from the human heart to God--the cry of the lorn spirit for its Father, and the cry of icy after the Father has been found. A sad life, astir with perplexities, hedged in by shad... [ Continue Reading ]
_My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto Thy judgments at all times._ THE RIGHT AND THE WRONG I. A hungering for the right. This hunger indicates: 1. The existence of rectitude. For every Divine instinct there is an objective provision. 2. The condition of healthfulness. As a rule, wh... [ Continue Reading ]
_Remove from me reproach and contempt; for I have kept Thy testimonies._ SOCIAL CONTEMPT AND CONSCIOUS RECTITUDE I. Social contempt (verse 22). 1. Is a thing to be deprecated. 2. Is a thing not always to be deserved. It is a characteristic of wicked society, that it condemns the good. II. Consc... [ Continue Reading ]
_Princes also did sit and speak against me._ 1. It is a hard temptation when the godly are troubled by any wicked men; but much harder when they are troubled by men of honour and authority. (1) First, by reason of their place: the greater power they have, the greater peril to encounter with their... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors._ These are two great benefits, which commonly men crave: Pleasure to refresh them; Counsel to govern them. David protests he found them both in the Word and sends all other, who would have them, to seek them there where he found them. 1. As... [ Continue Reading ]
_My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken Thou me according to Thy Word._ CLEAVING TO THE DUST Several verses of this long psalm begin with the same words: “My soul melteth away from very heaviness”; “my soul hath longed for Thy salvation”; “my soul is always in my hand”; “oh, let my soul live, and... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have declared my ways, and Thou heartiest me: teach me Thy statutes._ A MAN OF GOD ALONE WITH GOD The first lesson for man is, to know his God; the second is, to know himself; and as the unbeliever fails in the first, he fails in the second also, he does not know himself. He does not think much... [ Continue Reading ]
_Make me to understand the way of Thy precepts; so shall I talk of Thy wondrous works._ THE STUDENT’S PRAYER I. The student’s prayer. I hope that we are all students in the school of Christ--all disciples or scholars--and I trust we shall adopt the student’s prayer as our own: “Make me to understa... [ Continue Reading ]
_Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me Thy law graciously._ LYING I. The faculty of lying. Man has a faculty for misrepresenting facts and for deceiving men. The mere possession of this faculty is not necessarily wrong; all depends upon the motives that inspire it, and the uses to which it... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have chosen the way of truth: Thy judgments have I laid before me._ THE COMMENDABLE PAST AND THE DESIRABLE FUTURE IN LIFE I. The commendable in the past. 1. The best choice has been made. The way of truth is the way of reality, in contradistinction to the way of sham and fiction. 2. The best... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have stuck unto Thy testimonies: O Lord, put me not to shame._ THE STICKING TO GOD’S TESTIMONIES I. What the psalmist means by God’s testimonies. 1. The children of God do not cleave to the bare letter of the Word--the mere vowels and consonants and syllables of Scripture, but to such testimon... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will run the way of Thy commandments, when Thou shalt enlarge my heart._ LIBERTY OF HEART I. Consciousness of actual captivity. The feeling may be illustrated by the case of a messenger in time of war charged by a great king with an important commission, who on his way is seized by the king’s en... [ Continue Reading ]
_Teach me, O Lord, the way of Thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end._ ETHICAL INSTRUCTION I. Ethical instruction is instruction in duty. There is no knowledge so important as the knowledge of our obligations to ourselves, to society, and to God. Scientific instruction is nothing to this,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Give me understanding, and I shall keep Thy law; yes, I shall observe it with my whole heart._ DAVID’S PRAYER AND RESOLUTION I. Their order. Knowledge must necessarily precede obedience, since there can be nothing chosen by the will but what the understanding has first allowed; the will being des... [ Continue Reading ]
_Incline my heart unto Thy testimonies, and not to covetousness._ THE BANE AND THE ANTIDOTE I. The evil of man and its antidote. 1. The evil of man is covetousness. This is the root of the moral Upas. 2. The antidote of this evil is Divine truth. The Word of God not only condemns covetousness, b... [ Continue Reading ]
_Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken Thou me in Thy way._ AN EXEMPLARY PRAYER This prayer includes three things:-- I. Diversion from the false. 1. Vanity is a bad thing. 2. Men are interested in this bad thing. 3. Their interest in it is a great evil. 4. Deliverance from th... [ Continue Reading ]
_Stablish Thy Word unto Thy servant, who is devoted to Thy fear._ CONFIRMATION By the “Word” here, some understand simply the promise of God. But, in truth, the meaning is far larger, and comprehends the whole Word of God’s revelation--truth, precept, command, judgment, promise--he prays for the c... [ Continue Reading ]
_Turn away my reproach which I fear; for Thy judgments are good._ THE DREADED AND THE DESIRED I. What is here dreaded (verse 39). 1. Reproach is of two kinds. (1) The deserved. The man who is false, mean, corrupt, deserves reproach. (2) The undeserved. 2. Now, whether reproach is deserved or u... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let Thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even Thy salvation, according to Thy Word._ A GRACIOUS PRAYER 1. It is in itself a very gracious prayer. (1) It is offered on right grounds. There is no mention of merit or desert. His entreaty is for mercy only. (2) It asks for the right thing--“Thy s... [ Continue Reading ]
_So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me: far I trust in Thy Word._ THE REPROACH ANSWERED His state was this--depending upon, and trusting to that word of promise which the Holy Ghost had applied with power to his conscience; not relying upon the bare letter of truth, but leanin... [ Continue Reading ]
_So shall I keep Thy law continually for ever and ever._ A NOBLE RESOLUTION I. To be constantly obedient (verse 44). What is obedience? Not conformity to the letter of the law, but the incarnation of the spirit of the law It is to have the Divine will not only written in the heart, hut living and... [ Continue Reading ]
_And I will walk at liberty: for I seek Thy precepts._ LIBERTY I. Liberty is in progressive action. Few can truthfully say, “I will walk”; they are carried, they are driven on the way of life, they act not from themselves, but from others. They are mere spokes in the wheel of the social machine.... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will speak of Thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed._ THE MORAL MARTYR Religion is proposed to us in two different points of view, a point of speculation, and a point of practice. Accordingly, there are two sorts of martyrdom; a martyrdom for doctrine, and a martyrdom for m... [ Continue Reading ]
_And I will delight myself in Thy commandments, which I have loved._ GOD S COMMANDMENTS TO BE LOVED The love of God’s laws is certainly to be distinguished from the mere outward observance of them. As in the law of Moses, so far more in the Gospel of Christ, religion is “that of the heart, in the s... [ Continue Reading ]
_Remember the Word unto Thy servant, upon which Thou hast caused me to hope._ PLEADING PRAYER I admire in this psalm very greatly the singular amalgam that we have of testimony, of prayer, and of praise. In one verse the psalmist bears witness, in a second verse he praises, in a third verse he pra... [ Continue Reading ]
_This is my comfort in my affliction: for Thy Word hath quickened me._ COMFORT AND QUICKENING I. In our affliction, the word of God quickens to comfort. 1. By leading us to God, who is able to bless. 2. By showing us that God is willing and waiting to bless. 3. By throwing a mild and beautiful... [ Continue Reading ]
_The proud have had me greatly in derision; yet have I not declined from Thy law._ THE CONTEMPTIBLE AND ADMIRABLE IN CHARACTER I. The contemptible. “The proud.” 1. Who are the despicably proud? Not the men who have formed a true estimate of their powers, and are nobly self-reliant, but the superc... [ Continue Reading ]
_I remembered Thy judgments of old, O Lord; and have comforted myself._ A BLESSED FIELD LOT MEMORY The Divine Word may be looked upon here-- I. As a field for memory. 1. A refreshing field. What flowers bloom, what fruit clusters, what salubrious air breathes here. 2. A large field. It goes bac... [ Continue Reading ]
_Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake Thy law._ THE MOST HORRIBLE Of all the horrible things in the universe wickedness is the most horrible. I. It is most revolting to our sense of the beautiful. The aesthetical element exists in a greater or less degree in all moral... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage._ OBLIGATION A PRIVILEGE When the Eastern traveller takes shelter from the scorching heat of noon, or halts for the night in some inn or caravansary, which is for the time the house of his pilgrimage, he takes the sackbut, or the lyre,... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have remembered Thy name, O Lord, in the night, and have kept Thy law._ THOUGHT It is the glory of man that he can think. We conquer Nature by thought. Thought has stretched out its hand, reached the clouds, caught the lightning, made it stand quivering at our side, ready to waft through rocks... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou art my portion, O Lord: I have said that I would keep Thy words._ THE WEALTH OF LIFE A man’s portion is that which he deliberately chooses as the chief object of his life, that on which he concentrates” his thought, bestows his energy, lavishes his affection; that which in turn colours him, m... [ Continue Reading ]
_I entreated Thy favour with my whole heart: be merciful unto me according to Thy Word._ THE DUTIES WHICH MARK THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN COURSE I. The consideration of our ways. 1. He betakes himself to consider-- (1) not the ways of other people, officiously prying into their char-actor... [ Continue Reading ]
_I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto Thy testimonies._ A GODLY LIFE I. The way into a godly life. “I thought.” Wonderful act is this; an act which no creature on earth bug man can perform. By thought he has created the civilized world. Let a man think on his “ways” in relation to God, an... [ Continue Reading ]
_I made haste, and delayed not to keep Thy commandments._ THE FOLLY AND DANGER OF IRRESOLUTION AND DELAYING I. Consider the reasons and excuses which men pretend for delaying this necessary work, and show the unreasonableness of them. 1. Many cannot at present bring themselves to it, but they hop... [ Continue Reading ]
_At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto Thee because of Thy righteous judgments._ INCITEMENTS TO GRATITUDE I. The particular incitements to David’s gratitude here specified. “Because of Thy righteous judgments.” The reference appears to be to the afflictive dispensations of Providence. 1. Th... [ Continue Reading ]
_I am a companion of all them that fear Thee, and of them that keep Thy _precepts. GOOD SOCIETY God has made man for society and society for man. The society, however, to which the text points is the society of the highest type, composed of those who fear God and keep His “precepts.” I. This is t... [ Continue Reading ]
_The earth, O Lord, is full of Thy mercy: teach me Thy statutes._ MAN AND THE EARTH I. Man realizing the abounding of God’s mercy on the earth. II. Man imploring God’s counsels on the earth. “Teach me Thy statutes.” These statutes are required in order to guide men-- 1. To a right appreciation o... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou hast dealt with Thy servant, O Lord._ A GOOD MAN I. The testimony of a good man. 1. Concerning God. His kind treatment and faithful promise. 2. Concerning affliction. II. The prayer Of a good man for the highest instruction. III. The experience Of a good man. (_Homilist._) GOOD JUDGMENT... [ Continue Reading ]
_Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for l have believed Thy commandments._ EXCELLENCE OF THE LAW I. What is implied in believing God’s commandments. 1. That we are persuaded of their reality and existence. 2. That we are convinced of their excellence and absolute perfection. 3. That we recei... [ Continue Reading ]
_Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept Thy Word._ THE FRUITS OF SANCTIFIED AFFLICTION 1. Your afflictions, if sanctified, will lead you to searchings of heart. Many sins, long forgotten, are now recalled to remembrance. Then, retiring, into the secret recesses of the spirit, wh... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou art good and doest good._ GOD GOOD IN BEING AND GOOD IN ACTION I. God good in being. “Thou art good.” Good in the sense of kindness and in the sense of moral perfection,--the primal Font of all happiness in the universe, and the immutable Standard of all excellence. 1. Essentially good. His... [ Continue Reading ]
_The proud have forged a lie against me._ THE SLANDERER, THE CORRUPT, THE PIOUS I. The tongue of the slanderer. Slander is-- 1. Malicious. Its inspiration is envy, jealousy, or revenge. 2. Mischievous. It often lacerates a man’s heart, and destroys his good name, which may be dearer than life. “... [ Continue Reading ]
_It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn Thy statutes._ THE USES OF AFFLICTION I. Afflictions promote virtue, and goodness of heart, as they tend to compose our minds to a sedate and thoughtful disposition and habit. II. Afflictions tend to restrain our appetites and pass... [ Continue Reading ]
_The law of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver._ THE BIBLE BETTER THAN MONEY I. Because it gives us better food. It is well designated the “word of life,” because by it the life of God is implanted in the human spirit and by it preserved. Christ is “our life,” and the su... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding._ THE RIGHT ATTITUDE OF MAN IN RELATION TO GOD I. Recognizing God as the author of his existence. “Thy hands.” I am not the creature of chance or of necessity, the product of the blind forces of nature. I recognize Thy hands, the hand... [ Continue Reading ]
_They that fear Thee will be glad when they nee me; because I have hoped in Thy Word._ THE GOOD MAN I. The spiritual interest of the good in each other (verse 74). In what, concerning each other, are they most profoundly interested? Their ripe moral condition. “Because I have hoped in Thy Word.” H... [ Continue Reading ]
_I know, O Lord, that Thy judgments are right, and that Thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me._ DIVINE RECTITUDE AND FIDELITY I. The truths declared. 1. In all the afflictive events of life, we are to recognize, not only a directing and an overruling Providence in general, but also the applicati... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let Thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live._ MERCY TO LIVE WELL He prayed before for mercy; now again he prayeth for mercy. The children of’ God have such an earnest desire of mercy, that whatever sense thereof they get, they still cry for more; and sure it is in this life they can never... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let my heart be sound in Thy statutes._ A SOUND HEART A heathen prayed for a “sound mind in a sound body.” A sound body is, of all earthly blessings, the most priceless. But a sound heart is a far greater blessing. A sound heart, like the _A_Eolian harp, can catch music from the tempest, or, like... [ Continue Reading ]
_My soul fainteth for Thy salvation: but I hope in Thy Word._ PAINFUL SOUL MOODS AND THEIR ANTIDOTES I. Painful moods of soul. 1. Painful yearning (Psalms 119:81). (1) The general objects of this yearning. (A) A sense of security. (B) A sense of comfort. (2) The distress of this yearning. (A... [ Continue Reading ]
_For I am become like a bottle in the smoke._ THE WINESKIN IN THE SMOKE Ewald and Delitzsch read, “Although I am become as a wineskin hung in the smoke, yet do I not forget Thy statutes.” As a possible alternative read, “For I am become as a wineskin in the smoke, because I do not forget Thy statut... [ Continue Reading ]
_How many are the days of Thy servant?_ when wilt Thou execute judgment on them that persecute me? A SUGGESTIVE QUESTION I. God’s knowledge of the length of man’s life. To Him there are no accidental deaths, no premature graves. II. Man’s ignorance of the length of his life. This indicates 1. T... [ Continue Reading ]
_They had almost consumed me upon earth; but I forsook not Thy precepts._ DAVID’S BEHAVIOUR IN TROUBLE I. How he behaved in extreme distress. 1. The precepts of God were the constant subject of his thoughts. 2. He was careful to walk in the way wherein he was directed by the Word of God to walk.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Quicken me after Thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of Thy mouth._ GRAPPLING IRONS I. His intense desire that he might keep the testimony of God’s mouth. 1. This desire was founded in a high esteem of God’s Word. He viewed the Divine revelation as coming directly from Jehovah’s ow... [ Continue Reading ]
_For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven._ MY SOLACE IN AFFLICTION I. Here we have strong consolation in certain facts which he remembered. Fly ye to the mountains when the enemy invades the land. Hide in the strongholds of your God. 1. The eternal existence of God, which is implied in th... [ Continue Reading ]
_All are Thy servants._ ALL THINGS ARE THY SERVANTS The psalmist finds God’s Word in nature, in the whole physical universe. To him the universal order spoke of One who ordered all things according to the good pleasure of His will. Behind all forces and laws he saw a Hand which still governed them,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Unless Thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction._ GOD’S WORD I. A delight in God’s Word yields support in afflictions (verse 92). It is impossible to delight in God’s Word, containing as it does rich promises, and the revelation of a glorious future, without ha... [ Continue Reading ]
_I am Thine, save me; for I have sought Thy precepts._ GOD THE OWNER AND SAVIOUR OF MAN I. Owner. 1. All men are His by necessity-- (1) Absolutely. (2) Indefeasibly. (3) For ever. 2. All good men are His by consecration. This surrender is man’s primary duty, the one act necessary to give mora... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have seen an end of all perfection; but Thy commandment is exceeding broad._ A SAD MORAL DISCOVERY I. The nature of this discovery. “An end of all perfection.” Material nature is perfect in all its departments and forms; but in human history no perfection is found. It is not found in the though... [ Continue Reading ]
_O how love I Thy law! it is my meditation all the day._ LOVE TO THE SCRIPTURES I. They are indubitably authenticated and divinely inspired. 1 The concurrent testimony of Jew and Gentile, of friend and foe, borne through successive ages to the present time, ascertains their authenticity and truth.... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have more understanding than all my teachers: for Thy testimonies are my meditation._ INWARD VIRTUES TO THE TRUTH OF THE GOSPEL 1. By obeying the commands of Scripture we learn that these commands really come from God; by trying we make proof; by doing we come to know. Now, how comes this to pa... [ Continue Reading ]
_How sweet are Thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! _ THE BEST CHRISTMAS FARE I like this way of describing the reception of God’s Word as a matter of eating, for a man cannot eat God’s Word without living. There is a reality about the faith which eats; there is a somethi... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path._ THE DIVINE LAMP God’s Word as a lamp is-- I. Ever needful. Man needs a guide through life. His mental eyes are dim, and the road is drear, intricate, and dark. II. Always available. It Suits every path in life. The path of the young an... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep Thy righteous judgments._ THE PSALMIST’S SOLEMN RESOLUTION I. The object of the psalmist’s purpose was to keep the righteous judgments of God. This implies-- 1. Labouring to get a true knowledge thereof; to understand aright what God has been... [ Continue Reading ]
_I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O Lord, according unto Thy Word._ A COMMON CONDITION AND AN INDISPENSABLE BLESSING I. A condition that is common to man. How varied the afflictions of men, personal and social, physical and mental--disease, poverty, bereavement, oppression, etc. Our human aff... [ Continue Reading ]
_Accept, I beseech Thee, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord, and teach me Thy judgments._ AN ASPIRATION OF PIETY This short prayer cries out for two things. I. For Divine acceptance of true worship. “Accept, I beseech Thee,” etc. 1. Worship is an offering. It is the soul offering its hig... [ Continue Reading ]
_My soul is continually in my hand._ RELIGION Religion is here presented in three aspects. I. As a deeply felt need in the immediate prospect of death. “My soul is continually in my hand.” That is, my life is in constant danger: death confronts me. II. As a spirit of persevering faithfulness thr... [ Continue Reading ]
_The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from Thy precepts._ THE SNARES LAID FOR A GOOD MAN I. Here is a particular proof of the world’s hatred to the godly--they have laid snares for me. 1. The instigation to this injurious practice. Unquestionably it originates in the enmity of the... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart._ THE CHRISTIAN’S PRIVILEGE, JOY, AND LIFE I. The Christian’s privilege. “Thy testimonies.” The blessings here offered are--forgiveness of sin; reconciliation with God, and communion with Him; peace of co... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have inclined mine heart to perform Thy statutes alway, even unto the end._ THE MEANS OF GIVING THE HEART A RIGHT INCLINATION The necessity of labouring for ourselves, and our entire dependence on the grace of God, are not incompatible; and so we find that the psalmist, while in one place, spea... [ Continue Reading ]
_I hate vain thoughts: but Thy law do I love._ THE HATED AND THE LOVED I. The hated. “I hate vain thoughts.” The number of these is legion, the variety all but endless. Vain thoughts may include worthless thoughts on true subjects as well as on false. Vain thoughts are-- 1. Always worthless. They... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou art my hiding-place and my shield: I hope in Thy Word._ THE GUARDIAN AND SUPPORT OF SOULS I. The guardianship of god enjoyed. “Hiding-place” is a place of protection, a place where the enemy cannot discover you. “Shield” is an instrument of protection, that which prevents the arrow or the sw... [ Continue Reading ]
_Depart from me, ye evil-doers; for I will keep the commandments of my God._ “GO!” AND THEY GO “You go your way,” he says in effect, “and I will go mine; I am for obedience, you are not for that, and you are asking the wrong man to be your companion. Away to your own sort!” I. Here is a dismissal... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let me not be ashamed of my hope._ THE CHRISTIAN’S SHEET-ANCHOR I. That we may not at last be ashamed of our hope, it must originate in a change of the temper of the heart. The carnal mind must be regenerated. Old things must pass away and all things become new. God must be loved and Christ recei... [ Continue Reading ]
_Held Thou me up, and I shall be safe._ THE CHRISTIAN’S SECURITY I. The man of god presenting himself before the throne of grace, with a humble acknowledgment of his sense of exposure to difficulty and danger, and his sense of his own helplessness in himself. No man ever went to the Lord and said,... [ Continue Reading ]
_My flesh trembleth for fear of Thee; and I am afraid of Thy judgments._ THE TREMBLING FLESH I. The psalmist, in this section, contemplates God’s wrath against sinners (verses 118, 119). Then apparently his thought goes on to his own case, and what is likely to be his own sentence. He is disturbed... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have done judgment and justice._ WHAT EVERY MAN SHOULD DO, AND WHAT EVERY MAN REQUIRES I. What every man should do. “I have done judgment and justice.” The whole moral code of the universe may be reduced to two words--Be just. 1. Be just to self. Properly train your own faculties, discipline y... [ Continue Reading ]
_Deal with Thy servant according unto Thy mercy._ In these words we have a prayer I. For merciful treatment. 1. Not according to Thy justice. This would involve our ruin. 2. Not according to the mercy of men. This would be worthless. But “according to Thy mercy.” That mercy is all-compassionate,... [ Continue Reading ]
_It is time for Thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void Thy law._ “TIME FOR THEE TO WORK” The psalmist was surrounded, as would appear, by widespread defection from God’s law. But instead of trembling as if the sun were about to expire, he turns himself to God, and in fellowship with Him sees... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore I love Thy commandments above gold._ GOD’S WORD God’s Word is here revealed in several aspects-- I. As a prize. It is “above gold.” 1. It is intrinsically more valuable than gold. It contains the mind of God. 2. It is relatively more valuable than gold. It procures greater blessings.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy testimonies are wonderful; therefore doth my soul keep them._ WONDER AN ELEMENT OF RELIGION “The Scriptures,” says an old bishop, “are wonderful with respect to the matter which they contain, the manner in which they are written, and the effects which they produce.’’ What, then, is the Bible?... [ Continue Reading ]
_The entrance of Thy words giveth light: it giveth understanding unto the._ THE POWER OF THE WORD I. The entrance of the word. 1. Generally “Thy Word,” as used in the text, includes the whole of Divine revelation from its fret announcement in Genesis of a Redeemer to the last vision of the Heaven... [ Continue Reading ]
_I opened my mouth, and panted, for I longed for Thy commandments._ HOLY LONGINGS Here we have David desiring, praying, pleading, and setting forth very clearly what he pants after. May you and I have the same burning desires; and at the same time may we clearly know what we are panting for, so th... [ Continue Reading ]
_Look Thou upon me, and be merciful unto me._ PRAYER FOR MERCIES VOUCHSAFED TO THE GOOD I. Direction in the right way. We are all travellers on an unknown road, and we want direction. Order my footsteps. II. Defence against our foes. The dominion of evil is the greatest curse. There is a danger o... [ Continue Reading ]
_Order my steps in Thy Word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over _me_._ ORDERED STEPS I. Complete subservience to the will of God. 1. “Order.” He is a man who wishes to be under orders, he is willing to obey the Lord’s commands, and he is anxious to receive them, and to be made to carry t... [ Continue Reading ]
_Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant; and teach me Thy statutes._ CHRISTIAN OBEDIENCE AND SUPPORT I. The character of the petitioner. The true servant of God is distinguished by-- 1. Renunciation of the service of sin. 2. A rational and deliberate choice of that service in which he is invite... [ Continue Reading ]
_Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not Thy law._ THE WAIL OF THE GOOD OVER THE SINS OF THE WORLD I. They are the tears of order. Discord in sound is a cause of distress to a soul highly attuned to melody. But moral disorder is far more distressing to the soul of the truly spir... [ Continue Reading ]
_Righteous art Thou, O Lord, and upright are Thy judgments._ THE TESTIMONY OF A TRIED SAINT I. His testimony concerning God. 1. Concerning the Divine character (verses 137,142). (1) God’s righteousness has no standard but Himself What He does is right, not because it conforms to anything outside... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy Word is very pure; therefore Thy servant loveth it._ RELIGIOUS AFFECTIONS SPRING FROM LOVE TO DIVINE THINGS 1. A love to Divine things for the beauty of their moral excellency is the spring of all holy affections. 2. There is given to believers a new, supernatural sense, which perceives the... [ Continue Reading ]
_I am small and despised: yet do not I forget Thy precepts._ THE COMMON LOT I wish to speak of our own separate lives. To the most wearied of you all, I would teach that there is hope. I would say, in spite of every trial which God’s disguised mercy may send you, in spite of every humiliation which... [ Continue Reading ]
_The righteousness of Thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live._ ALIVE I. Consider this prayer in its simplicity. 1. It is a suitable prayer for the awakened sinner. Christ is our life; but we need understanding, or we shall miss it. 2. It is equally applicable to... [ Continue Reading ]
_I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O Lord: I will keep Thy statutes._ CRIES OF DISTRESS Do we, or do we not, desire to get rid of every evil way? Are we anxious to be sincere and without offence, holy in our character, and obedient to God’s statutes in our lives? I. Every man who desired puri... [ Continue Reading ]
_Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in Thy Word._ THE INEXHAUSTIBLENESS OF THE BIBLE There is something very surprising in the fact--but that it is a fact admits of no debate--that the Bible is not of a size to alarm any one, be his time ever so occupied, and yet that it is... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou art near, O Lord._ THE NEARNESS OF GOD I. God is near us in the hour of human desertion. We are never in reality alone, never in reality deserted. On our right hand and on our left the Invisible walks. II. God is near us in the hour of temptation. When an army goes forth to battle, a true l... [ Continue Reading ]
_Many are my persecutors and mine enemies._ THE TRIALS AND TRAITS OF PIETY I. The trials of piety. They are twofold--objective and subjective. 1. Objective. “Many are my persecutors and enemies.” “In the world ye shall have tribulation,” etc. The seed of the serpent is always darting its venomous... [ Continue Reading ]
_I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved; because they kept not Thy Word._ CHRISTIAN GRIEF OVER TRANSGRESSORS One of the influences and results of true piety on the heart is to move its sensibilities on behalf of the interests and welfare of others. One example out of many is presented to us i... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy word is true from the beginning._ THE BIBLE--GOD’S WORD Civilization, intelligence, morality, and general prosperity unmistakably mark the pathway of the Bible. These are the results that follow its introduction, or they are the signs that mark its coming. Or if these evidences of civilizatio... [ Continue Reading ]
_Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of Thy Word._ A COMMON FACT AND A RARE EXPERIENCE I. A common fact. The history of persecution and martyrdom has been, if not always inspired, sanctioned and enforced by “princes.” Their conduct in this respect is-- 1. In d... [ Continue Reading ]
_I rejoice at Thy Word, as one that findeth great spoil._ GREAT SPOIL How often is this idea repeated in Scripture! It is developed by our Lord in several of His parables, and touches us all very nearly. I. The discovery of the unexpected. Religion is full of surprises. A flash of Divine light wi... [ Continue Reading ]
_Seven times a day do I praise Thee._ DAVID, THE MODEL OF PRAISE David was a model of praise-- I. For temporal blessings. We do not praise God, as much as we ought, for our temporal blessings. II. For spiritual blessings. This is what he means in one place, when he says that God’s statutes “are... [ Continue Reading ]
_Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing shall offend them._ THE GLOWING TESTIMONY OF THE GOOD This is the testimony of-- I. Philosophy. Moral remorse, malign passions, dark forebodings, battling impulses, these are the source of all inner tumult; but, in the nature of the case, whe... [ Continue Reading ]
_Lord, I have hoped for Thy salvation, and done Thy commandments._ A JUSTIFIABLE HOPE There is a true hope and a false hope, a justifiable and an unjustifiable hope--the words direct us to the former. I. Here is a hope that has a justifiable object. What is the object? “Thy salvation.” What does... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have kept Thy precepts and Thy testimonies: for all my ways are before Thee._ A SINCERE SUMMARY, AND A SEARCHING INQUIRY (with verse 176):--These two verses form a paradox, both true, and true of the same man, at the same time. I. Our first text is a sincere summary of a godly man’s life. Look... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let my cry come near before Thee, O Lord: give me understanding according to Thy Word._ A MODEL PRAYER I. The earnestness it breathes. “Let my cry come near before Thee, O Lord.” This prayer is not a statement, not an address, but a “cry” denoting great fervency. Importunacy is the essential char... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let Thine hand help me; for I have chosen Thy precepts._ THE CHARACTER AND REQUESTS OF A TRULY GODLY MAN I. His character. 1. His choice is the precepts of God. 2. His object of desire is God’s salvation. With respect to earthly things, nature is contented with a little, and grace with less. No... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have longed for Thy salvation, O Lord; and Thy law is my _delight. LONGING FOR SALVATION I. The state of mind of which he was the subject. This phraseology implies, that of all other benefits, none are of such great value as the salvation of the soul; also that we cannot save ourselves, neither... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let my soul live, and it shall praise Thee._ THE LOVE OF LIFE VINDICATED Setting aside those who love life only for reasons which ought not to have such weight with them, and who would prolong it only to abuse it, I shall show you some better reasons for this attachment; derived from nature, from... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Thy servant; for I do not forget Thy commandments._ THE CHRISTIAN, CONSCIOUS OF DEPARTURE FROM GOD We have in this verse the description of a believer--not as he ought to be--not as he would wish to be--but as he is. It is not a fancy picture; it is a pi... [ Continue Reading ]