depreciation from some who even denied his apostleship. Job was surrounded with "miserable comforters," who thought, by defaming him, to defend God! Such trials nre hard to bear. 'fhey may arise (1) from the occasional foibles of a good man being magnified by the slanderer into sins; (2) from the utter impossibility of bad men reading aright the character of the jnst and pure. Having no virtue themselves, they cannot crerlit others with any. "Doth Job fear God for nought?'' "He hath a deril," etc. Many can say the words in Ps. lvi. 5. III. IT IS AN IJ;;FINITE RELIEF, UNDER SUCH cmcu:r.tSTANCES, TIIAT THE DELTEVF.ll OAN APPEAL TO HIS GoD. The whole psalm is such an appeal. 'frue, the Infinite Eye can discern flaws and faults where we suspect none; but then the same perfect gaze discerns the desire after being right and pure and true, however far the believer may be from realizing bis own ideal. '!'he suppliant has to do, moreover, with One who never misunderstands, and whose glory is in bis loving-kindness and truth. And from 'a Christian point of view we must remember that we have a High Priest who was in all points tried like as we are, yet without sin, and who can therefore pity what is frail, and pardon what is wrong. What a mercy to have such a throne of grace to which to flee! IV. TnE APPEAL WILL BE MARKED BY SPECIFIO ENTREATY. Here there are four lines of supplication. 1. 'l'hat God would vindicate him, and not let him be mixed up iu confusion with the men whose sin he hates (vers. 1, 9, 10). He looks to God, as Job did, as his Vindicator (Job xix. 25). 2. That God would search and prove him (ver. 2; cf. Ps. cxxxix. 23, 24). 3. That God would purify him (ver. 3). So the word here rendered" try" indicates.1 He is upright before men, but he does not pretend to be perfect before God. 4. That God would entirely deliver him from the surround- ings of ungenial and unholy men (vers. 9, 10). Whether the psalmist intended any reference to a future state or no, the believer now cannot help so applying the words. \Vho could endure the thought of evil and good always being mixed up together? The Divine mandate is, "Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matt. xiii. 13). Then will come the final severance. V. THE RESULT OF SUCH APPEAL WILL NOT BE FRUITLESS 0B VAIN. (Ver. 12.) "His prayer bas been heard; he is safe; he stands on the open, level table-land, where he has room to move, and where his enemies cannot hem him in ; and therefore he fulfils the resolve made before (ver. 7), and publicly pours out his thanksgivings to God" (Perowne). \Vboever thus lays his complaints before God will find deliverance in God's own appointed time; we must leave, however, the "when" with the great Defender. Eituer (1) on earth in our day, (2) on earth after our day, or (3) in heaven, God will bring us and our reputation out to the light. " He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday" (Ps. uxvii. 5, 6).-0.
Vere. 1-12.-Integrity. All through the Scriptures "integrity" is commendocl. It is a characteristic of the saints. ·whatever else they are, they must be men of integrity. This docs not mean that they are morally perfect, or that they have any ground for trustino-0 in their own righteousness; but it means that they have an" honest and good heart." \Vbatever may have been their past life, or however much of irnperfecLion may still cleave to them, they are conscious of a pure intent, o firm and bteadfast resolve to trust only what is true, to do only what is right, aud to order their whole conduct accordino- to the holy will of God. 'l'bey can say, as Joseph's brethren did, "We be true men;°'' or with Paul, "We serve God with a pure conscience." I. lNTEGl!ITY IS ESSENTIAL TO .A. RIGHT RELATION TO GOD. God desireth .. truth in the inward parts." All guile and falsehood are offensive to birn. If wo are to come to him, we must come just as we are; and if we are to abide with hirn, we must walk in the truth. lntegrity lies at the very basis of faith, and "without faith it is impossible to please God." II. INTEGRITY 18 ESSENTIAL TO TIIE POSSESSION OF A TRUE 0HARAOTER. "There is no redeeming efficacy in right intent; taken by itself, it would never vanquish the in ward state of evil at all. And yet it is just that by which all evil will be vanquished, under Christ and by grace, because it puts the soul iu such a state as makes the grace- power of Christ co-working with it effectual." "'l'ho sinning man, who comes into 1 See Perowne thereon. PB. XXVI, 1-Hl THE BOOK OF PSALMS. 197