is absurd; it is to make God lees powerful than man. Men cannot break or suspend the least law of nature, but men use the laws of nature to carry out their will. 3. Not according to arbitrary capri«. The will of God, which we are to pray to have done (Matt. vi. 10; xxvi. 39), is guided by perfect wisdom, righteousness, and love. Not simply "his will," but "the counsel of hie will" (Epb. i. 11). IL Tms DIVINE PURPOSE IS UNCHANGEABLE, Change would imply imperfection ln the plan or in God himself, want of foresight or instability of purpose (Mai. iii. 6). But the manifestation of God's purpose may and must change. The Bible is the history of this manifestation (Eph. iii. 4, 6; Col. i. 26). What we do not need, or could not bear, to know, God still bides (Acts i. 7). III. Tms DIVINE PURPOSE SHALL FINALLY TRIUMPH over all that oppose it. Even men's wickedness is overrnled to bring about (against their will) God's purposes (Acts ii. 23; iii. 18; Ps. lxxvi. 10). To reconcile this all-embracing, persistent, victorious purpoce with human freedom and responsibility is beyond our limited power. 'l'me wisdom lies in accepting both. But a small part of the great circle of truth is above our horizon. _ LESSONS. 1. This truth is the greatest encouragement to prayer. If all were not fore- seen and provided for, prayer would be useless. Prayer avails, not to change God's purposes, but as the appointed condition of the fulfilment of bis promises (1 John v. 14, 15). 2. The resting-place of faith (Dan. iv. 35; Rom. viii. 28).
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers.1-22.-Joy in God. In this section of the Commentary we aim at disco'l'ering the unity of the psalm, and of dealing with it accordingly, reserving the treatment of specific verses as separate texts, for another department. 'l'his psalm has neither title nor author's name appended thereto. It is manifestly an outburst of glad and gladdening song from some Old Testament believer, and is a glorious anticipation of Phil. iv. 4. It is refreshing to the spirit to find that in the olden times there were pious and holy souls, receptive of the revelation which God had even then given of himself, and who could gather up their thoughts in grateful calm as they mused on the perfections of their ever-reigning Lord. In this psalm there are no historic considerations presented, nor is there any individual experience suggested at which we have to look in studying this nmRzing illustration of joy in God. It is the" itself by itself"-the pure thing, the uplifting of a soul from the cloudland of earth to the sunlnnd of heaven. Here is- I. AN ENBAPTURillG VIEW OF THE GLORY OF OUR REVEALED Goo. we use this word "revealed,'' as indicated by this psalm, adviseclly on two grounds. For (1) the name" Jehovah" (ver. 1) is the name by which God revealed himself to Israel (Exod. vi. 3). The name "I am that I am" at once removes the God of the Hebrews for above all anthropomorphism. Then (2) in ver. 4 we are told," 'l'be Word of the Lonl is right;" so that, as the word is tbe expression of thought, and ns expressed thought indicates will, it is here declared that God bad made known his will (see Ps. ciii. 7; Heh. i. 1). How far God's early disclosures of himself went, our Lord Jesus Christ tells us (Matt. xxii. 31, 32). And it is by the light from words of God that we read his natural works. Having, then, God revealed by name and by word, what are the con- tents of that revelation which are here pointed out? 1. Right. (Vor. 4.) 'fbe Word of God, as given under the Old Testament, was pre-eminently right. As being such, the whole of the hundred and nineteenth psalm extols it. And now no nobler ethical code does the world possess than that given to Moses and the prophets, and confirmeu by Christ. 2. Truth. (Ver. 4.) I.e. faithfulness. As righteousness marks the Wonl, so fidelity to the Word marks the works of God. 3. Goodness. (Ver. 5.) I.e. loving- kindness. The earth is/ull of it. The sound eye rejoices in the sunshine; anti the pure heart reads the goodness of God everywhere. 4. Power. (Vers. 61 7,1 9.) We cannot rejoice in bare power; but when infinite power is in alliance with perfect goou- ness and with loving-kindness, then we can. 6. Wisdom. (Vor. 10.) 'fhere is not 1 See Kirkpatrick's interesting note on ver. 7. Throughout the whole ps~lm, indeed, hill brief notes are moat suggestive e.nd helpful. See also Dr, Green on vcr. 7, 252 THE BOOK OF PSALMS, [t>S, XXX.I!I, 1-22,