for us at the throne of glory. He sometimes enables us to pour out our hearts with fluency. This he does by discovering to us our wants, quickening our affections, and testifying to us God's willingness to answer prayer. He does not, however, always operate in this way.]
He will make intercession " with unutterable groans" —
[The joy of Christians is represented as being sometimes inexpressible™: but frequently a sense of sin overwhelms them. Then sighs and groans are the natural language of their hearts. Nor are such inarticulate prayers unacceptable to God. We have a remarkable instance of their success in the history of our Lord" — Perhaps no prayers are more pleasing to God than these0.]
Infer —
1. How many are there who live all their days without prayer !
[Those in whom the Spirit intercedes are often made to feel their inability to pray aright. Under a sense of their in- firmities they are constrained to cry to God for the help of his Spirit : but many pass all their days without any painful sense of their weakness. They satisfy themselves with a formal performance of their duties. Such persons never pray in an acceptable manner p. Real prayer implies fervour and impor- tunity11; and it is in vain to think that we have the spirit of grace, if we have not also the spirit of supplication1. May we therefore never be found of the number of those, whom the prophet and our blessed Lord have, on account of their for- mality in prayer, condemned as hypocrites s — ]
2. What comfort may this passage afford to pray- ing people !
[Many are discouraged by the difficulties which they experience in the duty of prayer. If they feel not an enlarge- ment of heart, they doubt whether their prayer will be accepted. But God will notice the groaning of his people*. Such inward desires may often be more pleasing to him than the most fluent petitions : they are, in fact, the voice of God's Spirit within us. Let not any then be dejected on account of occasional deadness. Let every one rather follow the advice of the prophet" — God, in due time, will assuredly fulfil his promise x — ]
111 1 Pet. i. 8. n John xi. 3:5, 38, 4t. " Ps. li. 17.
p John iv. 23. fi Isai. lxiv. 7. r Zech. xii. 10.
s Matt. xv. 7, 8. r Ps. xxxviii. 8, 9. " llab. ii. 3. * Ps. lxxxi. 10.