and unreasoning sovereignty round God and his ways. But look at life as a. whole and it soon comes into view that this thing is working in with that, a.nd all are workin; ~gether for good, ~hrougb the controlling of him who i_s love and who loves. Only~ 1f we would see thmgs clearly, and apprehend them a.r1ght, we must keep two thin"fl in mind. (1) That God's good is not circumstance; it is character, which finds expression in varying circumstance. (2) For some of us Go,l's idea ma.y be our vicarious suffering for the sake of others. And of this the Lord Jesus affords the sublime example. Affliction is often an insoln ble mystery (as was Job's affliction), until it is seen to be Divine agency for working good to otherH. And God graciously honours some to suffer as his agents. 3. See what God seems in Divine revelatiuns. Here again single things are often most perplexing, because thtir form and shaping are, in the lirst instance, precisely fitted to times a.nd sea.sons, and we find it so .-\itficult to separate the form from the thing, the kernel from the husk. Single things can only be "pa.rts of God's ways." But to us, in these latter days, the revelations of all the ages have been given, duly set in order a11d relation. We ongl,t to be able to fit so many things of Divine revelation together, as to fully convince ourselves that all do fit. II. WHAT Goo IS. This we find out through personal experiences. "He bath not given me over unto death," though he seems to be a. "sore chastcner." Exl'eriences correct appearances. "I have beard of thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth thee." "We walk by faith "-soul-vision, which reveals what is-" not by sight "-bodily vision, which only reveals what seems. 'l'o some the clouds about Sinai were God; just as to some travellers the mists hanging about the mountain are the mountain. We want to know what God is. " This is eternal life, to know thee, the only true God." And it is infinite satisfaction to discover that he is righteousness. And righteousness involves and iucludes love, as certainly as it does holiness and wisdom. When we find for ourselves what God is, we can describe him thllll: "The Being who is always right;" or, as e. r,salmist expresses it, "Righteous11ess and judgment are the foundation of his throne.' He is right in- himself, "just;" and right in his doings, ever doing justice-and justice is not justice unlees mercy is at the heart of it. When this is well fixed into our very mind and soul, then we get above and beyond all the evil influence of the thin_qs that seem; we begin to !(et visiou of the things that are. Right may still seem stern ; but we know it must be kiud. Right may still seem strange; but we know it must be wise. We cannot stop with this- " He bath chastened me sore." We must go on; we must say what else--what is the full fact, what isl And then we have to sa.y, "But he hath not given me over unto death."-R. T.
Ver. 19.-Public praise fur personal deliverance. The psalm may be ta.ken as expressing individual experiences or sentiments, or the psalmist may be regarded as representing the nation, and expressing national feeling. There is distinct recognition of past trouble and suffering, as God's well-deserved chastening. The returned exiles looked on their humiliating captivity in Babylon as such n. time of chastening. Then our text will associate with the dedication of the new (Ezra) temple; and we may picture the nation in procession, with the governor o.t the bead, ndvancing to the gates of the temple, and then, in formal Enstern style, making loud public demand for admit- tance. But it is even more directly practical for us to think of the psalmist as using these public events to help his own private meditations. Certainly we may use the psalm in this way, when we ho.ve recovered from some Divine chastisement, which imperilled life, and feel that we want to go into the house of the Lord, to give thanks unto the Ne.me of the Lord. I. Oua DELIVERANCES FROM DANGER SHOULD HAVE PRIVATE RECOGNITION. On this it would be too familiar to insist. He who receives is honourably bound to thank the giver, and feels e. natural impulse so to do. But e. man may fairly urge that his duty is done when he has thanked the donor personally and privately; and that he IS under no obliaation to t1Llk about it to everybody, or to send a notice of his thankful- ness to the new~papers. On this line men plead when more than the priviLte r~ognition of God's goodness to them is deman<le1l. They haue thanked God, and that 1s enough. II. Oun DELIVERANCE FROM DANGER SHOULD llAVE PUDLIO nECOGNlTION. Because he from whom we have received the blessiug is e. public Being, who sustains relations 100 'l'HE BOOK OF PSALMS. [rs. OXVIIL 1-29.