This flourishing is compared to the palm-tree, and the growth of the cedar. The palm-tree is of the gi'eatest verdure, beauty, and fruit- fulness, and the cedai- of the greatest and longest gi-owth of any trees. So are the righteous compared to the palm-tree for the beauty of pro- fession and fruitfulness in obedience ; and unto the cedar for a con- tinual, constant growth and increase in gi'ace. Thus it is with all that are righteous, unless it be from their own sinful neglect, as it is with many in this day. They are hereon rather like the shrubs and heaths in the wilderness, which see not when good cometh, than like the palm-tree or the cedars of Lebanon. And hereby do men what lies in them to obscure the glory of Christ and his kingdom, as well as disquiet their own souls.
The words that follow, verse 18, " Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the comis of our God," are not distinctive of some fi-om other, as though some only of the flourishing righteous were so planted ; but they are descriptive of them all, with an addition of the way and means whereby they are caused so to
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grow and flourish. And this is, their implantation in the house of the Lord; — that is, in the church, which is the seat of all the means of spiritual life, both as unto growth and flourishing, which God is pleased to grant unto believers. To be planted in the house of the Lord, is to be fixed and rooted in the grace communicated by the ordinances of divine worship. Unless we are planted in the house of the Lord, we cannot flourish in his courts. See Ps. i. 3. Unless we i are partakers of the grace administered in the ordinances, we cannot flourish in a fi"uitful profession. The outward participation of them is common unto hypocrites, that bear some leaves, but neither grow like the cedar nor bear fruit like the palm-tree. So the apostle prays for believers, that Christ may dwell in their hearts by faith, that they may be " rooted and grounded in love," Eph. iii. 1 7, — " rooted, built up, and established," Col. ii. 7. The want hereof is the cause that we have so many fruitless professors ; they have entered the courts of God by profession, but were never planted in his house by faith and love. Let us not deceive ourselves herein ; — we may be entered into the church, and made pai'takers of the outward privileges of it, and not be so planted in it as to flourish in grace and fruitfulness.
That which on this occasion I principally intend, is the grace and privilege expressed, verse 14, " They shall still bring forth fruit in old age ; they shall be fat and flourishing." There be three things which constitute a spiritual state, or belong to the life of God. 1. That believers be fat ; that is, by the heavenly juice, sap, or fatness of the true olive, of Christ himself, as Rom. xi. 1 7. This is the principle ol spiritual life and grace derived from him. When this abounds in them, so as to give them strength and vigour in the exercise of grace, to keep them from decays and withering, they are said to be fat ; which, in the Scripture phrase, is strong and healthy. 2. That they flourish in the greenness (as the word is) and verdure of profession; for vigor- ous grace will produce a flourishing profession. 3. That they still bring forth fruit in all duties of holy obedience. AH these are pro- mised unto them even in old age.
Even trees, when they grow old (the palm and the cedar), are apt to \ lose of their juice and verdure: and men in old age are subject unto all sorts of decays, both outward and inward. It is a rare thing to see a man in old age naturally vigorous, healthy, and strong; and would it were not more rare to see any spiritually so at the same season ! But this is here promised unto believers as an especial grace and pri- vilege, beyond what can be represented in the growth or fruit-bearing of plants and trees.
The grace intended is, that when believers are under all sorts of bodily and natural decays, and, it may be, have been overtaken with spiritual decays also, there is provision made in the covenant to
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render them fat, flourishing, and fruitful, — vigorous in the power of internal grace, and flourishing in the expression of it in all duties of obedience ; which is that which we now inquire after.
Blessed be God for this good word of his grace, that he hath given us such encouragement against all the decays and temptations of old age which we have to conflict withal !
And the Psalmist, in the next words, declares the greatness of this privilege: " To show that the Lord is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him." Consider the oppositions that lie asfainst the flourishing^ of believers in old age, the difficulties of it, the temptations that must be conquered, the actings of the mind above its natural abilities which are decayed, the weariness that is apt to befall us in a long spiritual conflict, the cries of the flesh to be spared, and we shall see it to be an evidence of the faithfulness, power, and righteousness of God in covenant; — nothing else could produce this mighty effect. So the prophet, treating of the same promise, Hos. xiv. 4-8, closeth his discourse with that blessed remark, verse 9, " Who is wise, and he shall understand these things ? prudent, and he shall know them ? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them." Spiritual wisdom will make us to see that the faithfulness and power of God are exerted in this work of preserving believers flourishing and fruitful unto the end.