The Pulpit Commentary — Psalms — Volume 3 — Section 316

God in him is seemingly gone; and he seems abandoned to the utter corruption of sin I No wonder that his spirit is overwhelmed and his heart desolate (ver. 4). How could it be otherwise? He is simply and utterly miserable. III. THE COMING OF RELlEF. 1. God leads him to remember the days of old. 'l'o hun_ger after those blessed times wh~n °?d came to his soul, and wns his Helper and Deliverer. Full of help are memories hke these. 2. Then to "meditate on all thy works." To see the wisdom, power, and love dispfayed in them, and so to hope that for him, too, there should be wrought some gracious work of God. AJ3 he thus mused, the fire of love and desire and faith would begiu to burn, aud then bis musing thought would take form nod action; for: 3. He would stretch forth his hands unto God. His soul was athirst for God, and now forth go his hands in prayer. Yes, relief was coming; for there are its near harbingers, everywhere and always. IV. THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN TAKEN BY FOLtCE, (Vers. 7-12.) What a crowd and rush of prayers, protestation~, cries, and pleadiug5, these verses contain I Ona after another they come, in hot haste and eagerness, that will take no denial. It is a very besiegement of the throne of grace. Ilut the chief burden of all is, not for deliverance lrorn enemits, but for a closer knowledge of God; the consciousness of his favou~, the speedy bearing of his loving-kindness; the being made to know the way wherem God would have him walk. Then come prayers that God would teach, would lead, would quicken, and would bring his soul out of trouble. There is prayer for deliverance from calamities; but the great longing is after the doing of God's will, and the qnickening of bis soul in righteousness. Prayer helps him in attaining that sub- missiveness of will which is essential to his gaining that unspeakable blessing on which his heart is set. And in proportion as a man is taught of God, this is the supremo desire of his soul. lf he gains this, it matters not much whether the outward calamities go or stay. If God's face shines upon him, man's may frown as it will. He has heaven within him, even though bell be outside of and all around him. What can any enemy do unto him, since God is on his side? He has won the kingdom of heaven, and no man can take it from him. Blessed is any sorrow when such reaction as this psalm reveals follows from it I The light affliction which was for the moment is now working out the "far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." The travail of his soul has issued in the glorious birth of tho life of the love of God. .A.nd this is ever God's intent in all our sorrows; for this he lets the enemy smite our soul down to the ground, and make us dwell in darkness. He desires that we should flee unto him to hide us. And, blessed be his Name I he ever will; and far more than that will hedo.-S. C. Ver. 7.-Becoming "like unto them that go down into the pit." Such was the psalmist's horrible dread, the extreme terror of his soul. I. WnAT DOES Tnrs MEAN? The dead were they who went down into tho pit. 1. The expression is one of tho.~e which mark tl,e intense i·epulsion with wliich the Old Testament saints regarded death. Listen to David's piteous cry, "Oh, sparo mo that I may recover strength," etc. (Ps. xxxix.; cf. also Pss. lxxxviii. 1-7, 10--12; cxv. 16-18; and passim throughout the Old Testament). They regarded the gre.va with feelings of the deepest gloom-as a dark pit, a prison with bars (Job xvii. lG). See also Hezekiah's entreaty that he might not die (Isa. xxxviii.). 'l'he gro.ve was the land of destruction, of darkness, where they could not praise God nor enjoy his favour; where they would be utterly forgotten; and whence they should never return. Because of its dread associations, our translators have often rendered the lie brew word into our word "hell,'' as in the well-known passage, "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all," etc. Ilut it is tho same word as is used by Jacob when he says, "Ye will bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to th.e grave." 'l'ha souls of the pious Jews shrank from death with an unutterable repulsion; and hence, when the psalmist here would express the extremity of spiritual distress, he describes it as becomin" "like unto theru that go down into the pit." Life and immortality aro broucrht to liaht by the gospel ; but those ancient saints had not that light. Contrnst St. iaul's co~1rageous "I am ready to be offered up," and the mournful moan of tho psalmi~t, " Oh, spare me I " the joy and hope of the gospel with the gloom of tho Old Testament (cf. Job xiv. with John xiv. e.nd the whole of the Now Testament), 2. PII, OXLIII, 1-12.] THE BOOK OF PSALMS. o5.5 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ·•· -- ----- But, wherefore-so it will at once be aslced-was this hope withheld from the psalmi,;i,1 and such _as they 1 And we reply that probably one reason was that they migl1t learn 118 they did learn, to put all their trust and find all their delight in God. He was I' be everything to them; their God ancl their exceeding Joy; and, when this was so, they could leave to him to determine what their future should be. They were to have, and to teach us to have, a present salvation, and to trust in God for all tha rest. And this, in our best moments, is what we do. It is not the thought of the future life that most of all influences the true believer, but the present realization of God. If he has that, it is well with him; but without that, even the hope of the future life waxes dim. What the soul of man wants is a salvation here and now; and it is what we may have, aud many have, and all should have, and then the soul will be at rest as to all the future may bring. And to teach this was, we think, one of the reasons why the clear promise of the future life which we enjoy was not given to them. But to return to the text, we iuquire- II. WHENOE S0CH DISTRESS OF SOUL AS THE TEXT INDICATES ARISES? 1. Some- times it is owing to the presence of earthly sorrow, and the cruelty of men. Such was the case, evidently, with the writer of this psalm. "Man's inhumanity to man" will not seldom smite the "soul down to the ground," and make the spirit faint. It has done such cruel and cursed work again and again. 2. Ddayed answers to prayer. How frequently do these psalms show the terrible strain upon the faith of God's people which such dola,ved answers to their prayers has ea.used (Pss. xxii. 2; lxxxviii. 9, and parallels) I 3. The sense of sin. (See Pss. xxxii., Ii.; and the penitential psalm8 generally; also the publican's prayer, "God be merciful," etc. I) Where no relief comes, sometimes, as in the case of Saul and Judas, men have rushed to self-destruc- tion, 'l'he agony of this Hense of sin is to the soul like that of broken bones to the body (Ps. Ii. 8). Think of what the prodigal's home-journey must have been, what bitter thoughts must have filled his mind. The conviction of sin has no comfort in itself, though it should lead thereto. 4. And sometimes God lets his beloved ones fall into such deep depression. See our blessed Lord in Gethsemane, nnd in the darkness on the cross. He kuows what such soul-agony means; in this, as in all points, he bas been tried like as we are. III. WHEREFORE IS IT PERMITTED? 1. For the trial and so the strengthening of trust in God. See the Syro-phCllnician woman-how her faith was tried I Bu~ she stood the test, as the Lord knew she would; and she rose thereafter nnd because of it to a glorious height of faith, such as even made the Lord himself to marvel, and to pronounce on her a benediction which otherwise she would never have gained. Honce it is that St. James bids us count it all joy when we fall into such trials. They aru the opportunity for the soul's winning the high prizes of the kingdom of God; anrl when God sends to us such trials, ho is but entering us for tho glorious contest. There- fore count it.all joy I 2. For the working in us of a holy hatred of sin. That is tho reason of the Holy Spirit's convicting work. Burnt children dread tho fire; therefore God lets sin burn the sinner. 3. For the helping of others. He who endures trinl witnesses for God as none other can. He declares in the fa.co of nn unbelieving worlcl -not to say Church-that God's grace is sufficient, and that therewith he can do and bear all things. That testimony is needed, and is fruitful of blessing. It was thus that always and everywhere the blood of the martyrs has been the seed of tbo Church. What heart-cheer it brings to tempted yet timid souls I See to it that we thus witness for God. It was thus our Lord witnessed. IV. WHENCE BELIEF COMES. "Hide not thy face from me "-so tho psalmist prays, and thus plainly decliues that what would certainly bring him rolief would bo the facu of God shining upon him. When God thus blesses hi11 servant8, than it is that hu gives them quietness, and none then can make trouble (Job xxxiv. 29); for then, man may be as cruel as he will, the specific answers to our prayers may be delayed as long os God sees fit,, the sense of sin will be swallowed up in the cortainty of God's pnrdon- ing love, and we are able to say," Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him I " CoNOLUSION. 1. Oan God's face shine upon us 1 Not if we are refusing to let go our hold of sin. If we will not renounce that, God's fnce cannot shino upon us. Therefora, be now, at once, reconciled to God. 2. Will it shine upon us, Yes, it ever does; though, as with the sun, clouds.may obscure its brightness. Wo patioutly  356 THE BOOK OF PSALMS. [PB. OXLIII. 1-12.