Ps. lxxxvi. 1 — 5. Bow down thine ear, O Lord ! hear me ; for I am poor and needy . Preserve my soul ; for I am holy. 0 thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee ! Be merciful unto me, O Lord ! for I cry unto thee daily. Re- joice the soul of thy servant : for unto thee, 0 Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive, ; plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
TRUE and genuine piety cannot always be cer- tainly known by men's intercourse with their fellow- creatures. Appearances may be so plausible, that they cannot, except by Him who searcheth the heart, be distinguished from realities. But in their inter- course with the Deity, the truth or falsehood of their
profession may be clearly discerned. The most re- fined hypocrite may, by examining the state of his soul in his private devotions, obtain the certain means of discovering his proper character, provided he have his standard rightly fixed, and his test im- partially applied. To furnish such a standard, is our object in the present discourse. We here behold the man after God's own heart drawing nigh to a throne of grace, and pouring out his soul in suppli- cations before God : and we wish to call your atten- tion especially to the spirit which he manifested in this sacred duty, since it will serve as an excellent criterion whereby to try and judge ourselves.
Let us then consider, I. The subject-matter of his prayer —
It should seem that David was now under great affliction, either from the persecutions of Saul, or from the unnatural rebellion of his son Absalom : and his prayers may well be understood, in the first instance, as relating to his temporal trials. But, as it is of his soul that he chiefly speaks, we shall dwell upon his prayer principally in that view. Let us notice then,
1. His petitions —
[St. Paul, in both his Epistles to Timothy, prays, that "grace, and mercy, and peace" may be multiplied upon him. These three terms comprehend the substance of the Psalmist's petitions. He desired " grace," to " preserve and save his soul." He desired " mercy;" " Be merciful unto me, O Lord!" And he desired " peace;" " Rejoice the soul of thy servant, O Lord!" Now these are such petitions as every sinner in the universe should offer. There are no other that can be compared with them, in point of importance to the souls of men. As for all the objects of time and sense, they sink into perfect insignifi- cance before the things which appertain to our everlasting salvation. To all therefore I would say, Seek what David sought. Cry mightily to God to have mercy upon you, and to preserve and save your soul : and when you have done that, you may fitly pray also for that consolation and joy, which a sense of his pardoning love will produce in the soul.]
2. His pleas —
[These are taken, partly, from what he experienced in his oion soul; and, partly, from the character of God himself.