faith, giving glory to your Godm." Your divine Master, who has engaged himself for you, would have you to " be without carefulness." His command is, " Be careful for nothing ; but in every thing by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known unto God ; and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus". " Only " cast your care thus on him," and you will soon know, by sweet experience, the force of that appeal which David made to the all-seeing God; " O Lord God of Hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee0!"]
m Rom. iv. 20. n Phil. iv. 6, 7- ° Ps. lxxxiv. 12.
Ps. cxxv. 4, 5. Do good, 0 Lord, unto those that be good, and to them that are upright in their hearts. As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them, forth with the workers of iniquity : but peace shall be upon Israel.
AT the commencement of this psalm, the inspired writer speaks of the Lord's people as secured both by the providence and grace of God. And it is fur- ther promised, in the verse before my text, that their trials shall not prevail beyond their strength a. But no exemption from trouble is promised them. It is taken for granted, that " the rod of the wicked shall fall upon them, though it shall not rest upon them." The wrath of man, like water turned upon a mill, shall come on them with no more force than shall be sufficient for accomplishing God's gracious purposes on their souls : the rest, however menacing its power may be, shall be made to pass off by an opened sluice0. Nevertheless, the trouble shall be sufficient to try every man, and to prove the truth and measure of his integrity ; the man who fairly meets and stands the trial, being approved, whilst he who sinks under it, or shuns it, shall be deemed altogether unworthy of the Divine favour. Hence the Psalmist pours out his fervent intercession in behalf of the upright, and at the same time warns every man of the danger of declension from the ways of God. The two points for our consideration are,
a Compare ver. 3. with 1 Cor. x. 10. b Ps. lxxvi. 10.