Is any merry ? evOvfiel rh-, 'is any of a good mind ?' — The effect is put for the state, gladness for prosperity, which is wont to make the heart glad and merry ; the word is translated ' of good cheer,' Acts xxvii. 22, ' I exhort you to be of good cheer ; ' it is evdv^elv.
Let him sing ^^salms. — In the original there is but one word, y\rdK- Xe'rw, let him sing ; but because the apostle is pressing them to religious use of every condition, and because this is the usual acception of the word y\raXkkr(o in the church, it is well rendered ' let him sing psalms.' Certainly, when the apostle biddeth them sing, he doth not mean songs, but psalms ; not songs to gratify the flesh, but psalms to refresh the spirit. Merry men are wont to ' chant to the sound of the viol,' Amos vi. Nature needeth not to be pressed to that ; therefore questionless he is to be understood of the duty of singing.
There are many practical notes and inferences deducible from this verse.
Ohs. 1. Our temporal condition is various and diverse ; now afflicted, and then merry. It is the folly of our thoughts that we cannot be happy, but we think our nest is among the stars : 'Man's best estate is altogether vanity,' Ps. xxxix. 5. Our prosperity is like glass, brittle when shining. The complaint of the church may be the motto of all the children of God : Ps. cii. 10, ' Thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.' The church's name, as I said, is ' afflicted and tossed with the tempest,' Isa. liv. 11.
^ ''Ec fiaraiu).' — Scjff. - ' Et's eiKy.' — Aquila,
"* ' Non peccare metuuut sed ardeie. ' — A itg.
410 AN EXPOSITION', WITH NOTES, [JaS. Y. 13.
Ohf!. 2. This is the perfection of Christianity to carry an equal pious mind in unequal conditions. Paul had learned to walk up-hill and down-hill with the same spirit and pace : ' I know both how to be abased, and how to abound,' Phil. iv. 12. The prophet saith of Ephraim that he was 'as a cake not turned,' Hosea vii. 8, baked of one side, but dough of the other. Most men' are fit but for one con- dition. Some cannot carry a full cup without spilling. Others can- not bear a full load without breaking. Sudden alterations perplex both body and mind. It is the mighty power of grace to keep the soul in an equal temper.
Ohs. 3. Several conditions require several duties. The Christian conversation is like a wheel, every spolce taketh its turn. God hath ])lanted in a man affections for every condition, grace for every affec- tion, and a duty for the exercise of every grace, and a season for every duty. The children of the Lord are ' like trees planted by the rivei-s of water, that bring forth their fruit in due season,' Ps. i. 3. There is no time wherein God doth not invite us to himself. It is wisdom to perform what is most seasonable. There is a time to encourage trust : Ps. Ivi. 3, ' At what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee ; ' and there is a time to deject security. In misery the duty is prayer, in prosperity, giving of thanks. Sometimes, I confess, these duties may be inverted. We may bless God for giving as well as taking,^ and in prosperity there may be great need of prayer ; but the apostle speaketh. of what is ordinary ; at least he would show us that there is no condi- tion so good but there is need of duty ; there is none so bad as to be past duty. In all estates we must be doing. No providence exempts you from duty, and cassates the bonds of obedience. It is our folly to betray our duties by our wishes. If it were thus and tlius with us, we could serve God readily and cheerfully. Thou fool ! there is no condition l)ut grace can improve it to some religious use, for the ad- vantage of some duty or other. It is thy laziness ; and the blame of thine own neglects must not be charged upon providence.
Ohs. 4. That it is of excellent advantage in religion to make use of the present affection; of sadness, to i)ut us upon prayer; of mirth, to put us upon thanksgiving: Anima nunquam melius cgit, quam ex impetu insif/nis aliaijus affcciiis — the soul never worketh more sweetly than when it worketh in the force of some eminent affection. With what advantage may we strike when the iron is hot! When the affections are stirred up on a carnal occasion, convert them to a religious use : Jer. xxii. 10, ' Weep not for the dead, but weep for him that goeth away,' &c. ; that is, when sorrow is stirred up by your private loss, turn it out into a public channel. So Luke xxiii. 28. So Christ would have them to spiritualise their tears, ' Weep not for me, 0 daughters of Jerusalem, but for youi'selves and children.' Christ would not have them to bewail his death in a carnal manner, but to bemoan their own sins and their approaching ruin. So for joy and mirth: Eph. v. 4, ' Not jesting, but rather giving of thanks.' Mentioning his sweet experiences should be a Clirislian's mirth and jesting. Oh ! that we could learn this wisdom, to take the advantage of a carnal motion, not to fulfil it, but to employ it for the uses of tJie sanctuary. When the