Bible Heaven/Bible Heaven.iso/online/mhcc21/v22050

Text File | 1994-03-02 | 10KB | 167 lines

22051
 * This psalm begins with expressions of devotion, which may be
 applied to Christ; but ends with such confidence of a
 resurrection, as must be applied to Christ, and to him only.

 - David flees to God's protection, with cheerful, believing
 confidence. Those who have avowed that the Lord is their Lord,
 should often put themselves in mind of what they have done, take
 the comfort of it, and live up to it. He devotes himself to the
 honour of God, in the service of the saints. Saints on earth we
 must be, or we shall never be saints in heaven. Those renewed by
 the grace of God, and devoted to the glory of God, are saints on
 earth. The saints in the earth are excellent ones, yet some of
 them so poor, that they needed to have David's goodness extended
 to them. David declares his resolution to have no fellowship
 with the works of darkness; he repeats the solemn choice he had
 made of God for his portion and happiness, takes to himself the
 comfort of the choice, and gives God the glory of it. This is
 the language of a devout and pious soul. Most take the world for
 their chief good, and place their happiness in the enjoyments of
 it; but how poor soever my condition is in this world, let me
 have the love and favour of God, and be accepted of him; let me
 have a title by promise to life and happiness in the future
 state; and I have enough. Heaven is an inheritance; we must take
 that for our home, our rest, our everlasting good, and look upon
 this world to be no more ours, than the country through which is
 our road to our Father's house. Those that have God for their
 portion, have a goodly heritage. Return unto thy rest, O my
 soul, and look no further. Gracious persons, though they still
 covet more of God, never covet more than God; but, being
 satisfied of his loving-kindness, are abundantly satisfied with
 it: they envy not any their carnal mirth and delights. But so
 ignorant and foolish are we, that if left to ourselves, we shall
 forsake our own mercies for lying vanities. God having given
 David counsel by his word and Spirit, his own thoughts taught
 him in the night season, and engaged him by faith to live to
 God.
  Verses #8-11|, are quoted by St. Peter in his first sermon,
 after the pouring out of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost, #Ac
 2:25-31|; he declared that David in them speaks concerning
 Christ, and particularly of his resurrection. And Christ being
 the Head of the body, the church, these verses may be applied to
 all Christians, guided and animated by the Spirit of Christ; and
 we may hence learn, that it is our wisdom and duty to set the
 Lord always before us. And if our eyes are ever toward God, our
 hearts and tongues may ever rejoice in him. Death destroys the
 hope of man, but not the hope of a real Christian. Christ's
 resurrection is an earnest of the believer's resurrection. In
 this world sorrow is our lot, but in heaven there is joy, a
 fulness of joy; our pleasures here are for a moment, but those
 at God's right hand are pleasures for evermore. Through this thy
 beloved Son, and our dear Saviour, thou wilt show us, O Lord,
 the path of life; thou wilt justify our souls now, and raise our
 bodies by thy power at the last day; when earthly sorrow shall
 end in heavenly joy, pain in everlasting happiness.
22062
 * David's integrity. (1-7) The character of his enemies. His
 hope of happiness. (8-15)

 #1-7 This psalm is a prayer. Feigned prayers are fruitless; but
 if our hearts lead our prayers, God will meet them with his
 favour. The psalmist had been used to pray, so that it was not
 his distress and danger that now first brought him to his duty.
 And he was encouraged by his faith to expect God would notice
 his prayers. Constant resolution and watchfulness against sins
 of the tongue, will be a good evidence of our integrity. Aware
 of man's propensity to wicked works, and of his own peculiar
 temptations, David had made God's word his preservative from the
 paths of Satan, which lead to destruction. If we carefully avoid
 the paths of sin, it will be very comfortable in the reflection,
 when we are in trouble. Those that are, through
 grace, going in God's paths, should pray that their goings may
 be held up in those paths. David prays, Lord, still hold me up.
 Those who would proceed and persevere in the ways of God, must,
 by faith and prayer, get daily fresh supplies of grace and strength
 from him. Show thy marvellous loving-kindness, distinguishing
 favours, not common mercies, but be gracious to me; do as thou
 usest to do to those who love thy name.
22069
 #8-15 Being compassed with enemies, David prays to God to keep
 him in safety. This prayer is a prediction that Christ would be
 preserved, through all the hardships and difficulties of his
 humiliation, to the glories and joys of his exalted state, and
 is a pattern to Christians to commit the keeping of their souls
 to God, trusting him to preserve them to his heavenly kingdom.
 Those are our worst enemies, that are enemies to our souls. They
 are God's sword, which cannot move without him, and which he
 will sheathe when he has done his work with it. They are his
 hand, by which he chastises his people. There is no fleeing from
 God's hand, but by fleeing to it. It is very comfortable, when
 we are in fear of the power of man, to see it dependent upon,
 and in subjection to the power of God. Most men look on the
 things of this world as the best things; and they look no
 further, nor show any care to provide for another life. The
 things of this world are called treasures, they are so
 accounted; but to the soul, and when compared with eternal
 blessings, they are trash. The most afflicted Christian need not
 envy the most prosperous men of the world, who have their
 portion in this life. Clothed with Christ's righteousness,
 having through his grace a good heart and a good life, may we by
 faith behold God's face, and set him always before us. When we
 awake every morning, may we be satisfied with his likeness set
 before us in his word, and with his likeness stamped upon us by
 his renewing grace. Happiness in the other world is prepared
 only for those that are justified and sanctified: they shall be
 put in possession of it when the soul awakes, at death, out of
 its slumber in the body, and when the body awakes, at the
 resurrection, out of its slumber in the grave. There is no
 satisfaction for a soul but in God, and in his good will towards
 us, and his good work in us; yet that satisfaction will not be
 perfect till we come to heaven.
22077
 * David rejoices in the deliverances God wrought for him. (1-19)
 He takes the comfort of his integrity, which God had cleared up.
 (20-28) He gives to God the glory of all his mighty deeds.
 (29-50)

 #1-19 The first words, "I will love thee, O Lord, my strength,"
 are the scope and contents of the psalm. Those that truly love
 God, may triumph in him as their Rock and Refuge, and may with
 confidence call upon him. It is good for us to observe all the
 circumstances of a mercy which magnify the power of God and his
 goodness to us in it. David was a praying man, and God was found
 a prayer-hearing God. If we pray as he did, we shall speed as he
 did. God's manifestation of his presence is very fully
 described, ver. #7-15|. Little appeared of man, but much of God,
 in these deliverances. It is not possible to apply to the
 history of the son of Jesse those awful, majestic, and
 stupendous words which are used through this description of the
 Divine manifestation. Every part of so solemn a scene of terrors
 tells us, a greater than David is here. God will not only
 deliver his people out of their troubles in due time, but he
 will bear them up under their troubles in the mean time. Can we
 meditate on ver. 18, without directing one thought to Gethsemane
 and Calvary? Can we forget that it was in the hour of Christ's
 deepest calamity, when Judas betrayed, when his friends forsook,
 when the multitude derided him, and the smiles of his Father's
 love were withheld, that the powers of darkness prevented him?
 The sorrows of death surrounded him, in his distress he prayed,
 #Heb 5:7|. God made the earth to shake and tremble, and the
 rocks to cleave, and brought him out, in his resurrection,
 because he delighted in him and in his undertaking.

22096
 #20-28 Those that forsake the ways of the Lord, depart from
 their God. But though conscious to ourselves of many a false
 step, let there not be a wicked departure from our God. David
 kept his eye upon the rule of God's commands. Constant care to
 keep from that sin, whatever it be, which most easily besets us,
 proves that we are upright before God. Those who show mercy to
 others, even they need mercy. Those who are faithful to God,
 shall find him all that to them which he has promised to be. The
 words of the Lord are pure words, very sure to be depended on,
 and very sweet to be delighted in. Those who resist God, and
 walk contrary to him, shall find that he will walk contrary to
 them, #Le 26:21-24|. The gracious recompence of which David
 spoke, may generally be expected by those who act from right
 motives. Hence he speaks comfort to the humble, and terror to
 the proud; "Thou wilt bring down high looks." And he speaks
 encouragement to himself; "Thou wilt light my candle:" thou wilt
 revive and comfort my sorrowful spirit; thou wilt guide my way,
 that I may avoid the snares laid for me. Thou wilt light my
 candle to work by, and give me an opportunity of serving thee.
 Let those that walk in darkness, and labour under
 discouragements, take courage; God himself will be a Light to
 them.