eyes were opened to the folly and injustice of bis bard thoughts of God. From this deep abasement ( ver. 22) he springs at a bound to the loftiest heiuht of faith. And in this twenty-sixth verse, he crushes together, as it were, the two extremes of his exferienoe. At once a cry of defeat and a shout of victory. . 'l'HE GEY OF DEFEAT, A CONFESSION OF WEAKNESS, DESPAm, FAILURE. "My flesh," etc. "Heart," in the Scriptures, stands for the whole mental and spiritual nature; "flesli "(often "flesh and blood"), for our nature as mortal, often as sinful. Here, as in Ps. lxxxiv. 2. An utter breakdown of energy, bodily, and mental. Hope and courage seem spent. 'l'he past looks an abyss in which happiness has been engulfed; the present, a crushing burden; the fnture, a dark blank. If I were to call this a picture of human life, I should seem to many darkly, ungratefully exaggerating. Our views of lifo depend on our experience. Young, happy, strong, hopeful,-yon find nothing like this. Past has few regrets, present few drawbacks, future no clouds. Thank God for sunshine! But remember on what a brittle thread life hangs. Health may fail, friends die, most trusted investments prove a snare, calculations mistaken. (Like houses on bTink of Lake of Zag.) The lesson of our own weakness one of great lessons of life. God has various ways--some gentle, some severe--of teaching it; but we need it. Those who do not learn it, not the happiest (vers. 6-9). Extreme case- people ruined by their own prosperity. But take milder examples-those who have never learned humbling lesson of weakness; not ripest, richest Christians, mo~t able to sympathize. Even our blessed Lord needed this lesson (may we venture to say?), not only for perfection of obedience, but sympathy (Heb. v. 7, 8; ii. 18). If you have never been forced to say, "My flesh and my heart fail," you have much to learn. Especially the full comfort and triumph of the other half of the verse. II. THE SHOUT OF VICTORY. The utterance of triumphant faith. "God,'' etc. 1. This implies what the New 'l'estament calls reccnciliation to God. Theologians speak of God being reconciled to us. The Scriptures, of our being reconciled-God reconciling us to himseif(Rom. xv, 10, see Revised Version, ver.11; 2 Cor. v. 18). God cannot be" the Strength" of a heart unreconciled-at enmity. I believe there are persons who have beard the gospel preached all their lives, yet never really taken in that the gospel is just this message. They know something is wanting to make them trne Christians. But "unreconciled !-at enmity! " Not so bad as that ! If they could see that it is even so, this would be first step to "taking hold of God's strength." An uneasy conscience ii; a great cause of weakness; a dead or sleeping conscience, worse. Peace is strength ; righteousness, love, joy, are strength. 2. A mind at rest in God; satisfied as to the wisdom, justice, goodness, of all his dealings; not because we can thoroughly understand them, but can trust God. Asaph had severe trials (Nr. 14). But worst, hardest., difficulty of reconciling what he saw in the \vorld with goodness and righteousness of God, Such doubt as may arise in the most devout mind; the more de:vout, the more painful. Insoluble to reason (ver. 16). "Light and peace come not by thinking, but by faith" (Perowne). In God's house, perhaps in public worship, perhaps in silent meditation and pro.yer, these two great truths dawned on him: (1) that God's plan is not to interfere violently to stop sin, but to make sin its own punisher and penalty; (2) the meaning and measure of life lie, not in the compass of this short life, but beyond, Some interpreters so possessed with belief that Hebrews were ignorant of immortality, that they explain this of temporn.l calamities. Pros- perous wickedness often has a shameful and terrible end. But the very difficulty (vers. 3-12) i~ that this is often not the case. Asaph would not have learned this in the house of prayer, but iu courts of law, haunts of business, etc. Besides, this view is unten- able. Impossible that Hebrews, to say nothing of inspired prop1 ,ets, could be ignorant of what Egyptians and other heathen nations knew. (Sheol is never "the gra1·e;" it is "Hades.") 3. Accordingly, here is an infinite portion, a boundless hope. "My Portion for ever." Guidance here, glory hereafter (ver. 24). In this sunshine, the darkness nnd chill of doubt vnuish. Not that the believer overlooks tl,e difficulties, but looks beyond. rer'.iaps sees ruore forcibly than the unbeliever; but only shadows across the path; no longer barriers, stumbling-blocks. "God" both "Strength" and "Portion.' Not my views, my faith, but God himself. He does not say," strength of my flesh," though that, too, is true (Gal. ii. 20, "iu the flesh"). Let th,\t fail, decay, perish I Before Asaph spoke or wrote as a prophet, be had to leuru as a believer. The same Spirit is willing to be our Tencher. 76 TBE BOOK OF PSALMS. ll'll, Ltlln. 1-28,
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1-28.-The grievous conflict of the flesh and the Spirit, and the glorious con- quest of the Spirit at the last. I. THE BEGINNING OF THE PSALM, In this he ingeniously pointeth at those rocks against which he wns like to have split his soul. II. THE MIDDLE OF THE PSALM. In this he candidly confesseth his ignorance and folly to have been the chicfest foundation of his fault. III. THE END OF THE PSALM. In this he gratefnllykisseth that hand which led him out of the labyrinth. Such is the clear and accurate summing up of the contents of this psalm by an old Puritan divine. Should any of us, unhappily, find our own portraiture in the conduct told of at the beginning, may it not be long ere the middle and the end of the psalm portray us equally well 1-S. C.