ATTENTION TO GOD's WORD ENCOURAGED.
Ps. lxxxv. 8. / will hear what God the Lord will speak. : for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints : but let them not turn again to folly.
IF we would obtain any blessing from God, we must seek it in the exercise of fervent prayer. Yet shall we not really obtain a blessing, unless we look up to God in expectation of an answer to our prayers. In this respect we must resemble a beggar who sup- plicates for alms. He is not satisfied with having presented his petition : he waits for an answer ; and never considers himself as having succeeded in his
requests, till he is in the actual enjoyment of the desired boon. This waiting spirit was exemplified in David, when he said, " In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up*." In like manner it is illustrated in the psalm before us, which seems to have been written after the Babylonish captivity, but previous to the complete and quiet settlement of the people in their own land. The petitions which are offered are extremely urgent : " Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger towards us to cease ! Wilt thou be angry with us for ever ? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations ? Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee ? Shew us thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us thy salvation13." The petitioner, then, determines to listen to God's voice, in the hope that he shall, in due season, receive an answer of peace : " I will hear what God the Lord will speak." Let us, for the elucidation of this subject, consider,
I. The attention to be paid to the word of God —
[The word, whether as contained in the inspired volume, or as delivered to us by the ministers of Christ, is truly and properly God's ; and, as his, it should be received by us with the deepest reverence. When St. Paul ministered at Thessa- lonica, the people "received his word, not as the word of man, but as the word of God : " and for that he specially commends themc. And thus, whether written or preached, it must be received by us. Whether we open the inspired volume our- selves, or go up to hear it in the house of God, we must, like Cornelius and his family, place ourselves as in the immediate presence of God, "to hear all that is commanded us of God'1:" and with meek submission we must say, like Samuel, " Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth e."]
But in our text we are informed,
II. What particular reason there is for that attention —
[" The Lord will speak peace unto his people and to his saints: " however much they have deserved his wrath and in- dignation, he will not retain his anger against them, if only they give ear to his word, and set themselves diligently to obey it. To the impenitent he never utters a single word of peace :
a Ps. v. 3. b ver. 4 — 7. c 1 Thess. ii. 13.
d Acts x. 33. e 1 Sam. iii. 10.