This indeed will not be imparted to any one at once : it is a progressive work : persons must be babes, and young men, before they are fathers : but from the time that they are truly converted unto God, they will " grow in grace," and " make their profiting to appear," till they have " attained to the full measure of the stature of Christ y." To all of you then I would say, Offer up with devoutest earnestness to God the petition in my text, "Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us : " and add to it that prayer of Paul for the Ephesian con- verts, which in import corresponds exactly with it ; " Let me so comprehend the love of Christ, as to be filled by it with all the fulness of God."]
From the text thus explained, we may learn,
1 . What is the great antidote to the troubles of life ?
[Certainly the Israelites, when doomed to perish in the wilderness, were in a very pitiable condition. But, if they could only attain this great object, they declared that their sorrows would all be turned into joyz. So whatever our troubles be, their sting will be altogether taken away, if they prevail to bring us to the footstool of our God, and to the enjoyment of the light of his countenance. The trials which God sends are for this very end; to purge away our dross, and
p Ps. xxvii. 4. i Ps. lxiii. 2. r Gen. i. 26, 27.
s Eph. iv. 24. * Exod. xxxiv. 29, 30. u 2 Cor. iii. 18.
x 1 John iii. 3. y Eph. iv. 13. z Eph. iii. 18, 19,