This psalm hath three parts. The title of it is, " A Song of loves," which I have already spoken unto; the preface of it, in the 1st verse; and the song itself, from the 2d verse to the end.
1 This sermon was preached at Stadham, June 7, 1674.
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The 1st verse contains a preface to this song of loves: — " My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the King ; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer/'
I shall offer a few things from these words : —
Observe, in general, that he that lays a good foundation makes a good beginning of what he hath to say. It is from his heart. " My heart," saith he, " is inditing." If things do not begin at the heart, whatsoever we do about spiritual things, they are of no value, of no use. We may perform duties, — we may pray, and preach, and hear ; but if these things do not spring from the heart (that is, from faith, and love, and delight working in the heart), all is lost. A sacrifice without a heart, a silly dove that has no heart, are things God abhors, Hos.vii. 11.
The heart of the psalmist was in this matter ; and if our heart be in it, it will be a duty, in our measure and proportion, good and acceptable with God, as it was with him.
There are in the verse two things: — I. The subject-matter treated of in this song of loves. II. The manner of expressing it.
1. The subject treated of: — 1. In general, that it is a good matter. It is not a song about vain, empty things; much less about wicked and sinful things, as the songs of the world are ; neither is it only about things that are true, but have no goodness in them : but, saith he, " My heart is inditing a good matter."
2. What this good matter is, is declared : " I speak of the things which I have made touching the King." " The subject," saith he, " of this song of mine is the King ; it is no ordinary person." It was the name whereby they called the Messiah, " Christ the Lord," under the Old Testament, who is, indeed, " The Lord of lords, and King of kings." " I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion," Ps. ii. 6- He was principally prophesied of as " a prince, a ruler, a captain; being to deliver the people of God." He is the subject of the song. And it is limited to things touching or concerning him ; as if he had said, " It is not for me, it is not for any mortal man, to conceive or express all the glories and excellencies of the great King, Jesus Christ ; but," saith he, " something touching, something concerning him."
The best we can reach or attain unto in this world, is only some- thing touching Christ. "We cannot yet behold the King in his glory ; we cannot see his uncreated excellencies or beauties, nor those un- speakable glories of his person, natures, and works, as we shall one day contemplate and behold."
" I speak," saith he, " of the things I have made;" that is, " which I have prepared ; I will mention only the things which I have com- posed concerning Christ."
So that the subject of this song is, in general, " a good matter ;" in
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particular, things touching Christ, and such things as the psalmist, through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, had composed.
II. There is the manner of their delivery, both as to their concep- tion and as to outward expression. Their conception, it was in his heart; as to the outward delivery, it was by his tongue. And there is a peculiarity in both. It is not an ordinary conception of the heart, — it is not a common expression of the tongue. If you will look into the margin of your Bibles, you will find that what we have rendered here, " inditing," in the original signifies " boiling" or " bub- bling up." The word refers to the bubbling up of water in a foun- tain or spring. The heart of the psalmist was so full of these things of Christ, things touching the King, that they did naturally over- flow, as water rising out of a spring naturally flows into the stream, without any labour or difficulty. It was no hard thing to him to speak of the things of Christ ; his heart was full of them. 0 that it was thus with us! It is promised it shall be so. In John iv. 14, Christ hath promised to give his people his Spirit, that " shall be in them as a well of water springing up into everlasting life."
" My tongue," saith he, " shall not only express it, but in a pecu- liar manner ; ' my tongue is the pen of a ready writer/ "
" A ready writer," — one speedy, steady, able to set down any thought or conception whatsoever. When we deal about the things of Christ, there is a peculiar manner required both in the conception of the heart and in the expression of the tongue.