Ver. 32.-The tenacity of sin. This psalm might have for title, "The Devil's Grip;" "'l'he Hrart-hold of Sin;" "The Gates of Hell prevailing," or any other such sad surname. For throughout its weary length it tells of scarce anything else. And would that it were only an old-world story !-a tale of ancient Israel, but of nobody else. But concerning such persistence in sin, note- I. IT IS SEEN TO-DAY AS MUCH AS EVER. In the history of nations; of Churches; of families; of individua.ls. Of how many may it be said as it was of Amon, "But Amon sinned more and more" l What Christian pastor has not bad under his own observation again and again those whose story is told here? II. THERE ARE NO GRACIOUS RESISTAJS"CES WHICH IT DOES NOT OVERCOME. "For all this," was said of old, and can be now. This "all" includes now, as of old: Divine revelation (ver. 5); early education (ver. 3) ; warning from ill ex.ample of others near to them (ver. 8); unspeakable mercies and deliverances (vers. 11, 12); per- petual providential love; forbearance upon forbearance (ver. 38); terrible judgments (ver. 31); opportunities of return (vers. 34, 35). All this and more of like gracious nature they disregarded, even as men do still. II[. ITS SECRET IS EVER THE EVIL HEART OF UNBELIEF. Not the unbelief which is the result of the perverted brain, but that which is generated by the evil heart, the sin-loving soul. IV. lTs WORD OF WARNING Is VERY PLAIN. 1. "Fools make a mock at sin." What else can they be who tamper and trifle with such a deadly thing! It may be in you'. seemingly weak as a cobweb film; let alone, it will become strong as the cable which holds fa$t, let the strain on it be what it may. 2. Meet this tenacity of sin by the tenacity of grace. Cling to Christ in strenuous prayer; hold on so to him. 3. Bo content with nothing less than the girt of the clean heart; be sanctified as well as justified. "The blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin." 4. Remember how the strong one was and ever wiii be cast out by the Stronger (Luke xi. 21, 22), even Christ, who is" mighty toisave," if we will give ourselves up to him.-S. C.
Ver. 34.-The determined sinner's regular round. There are regions to which so many tourists go, and the not!Lble places in which they usually visit in an almost fixed order, that the WBY they take has come to be known as and called "the regular round." This psalm and this verse seem to set forth another regular round which liin- hardened souls do perpetually take. We will- 13G THE BOOK OF PSALMS. [PS. LXXVIII. 1-72,
I. NoTE ITS STAGES. 1. They start with sin, and on and on they go, with occasional misgivings, which, however, soon grow less along the broad, attractive, much- frequented road. 2. But next they come to where the punishment of God has to be met and endured. This is a dreary place, and they cry out in their pain. But they cannot avoid this stage. However slowly they may seem to travel, they reach it one day, and a dark .iay that is. They had no business along the road at all, 1md God 'll"ill have them know that; and hence this punishment stage is placed ri"bt across it, that men may either be deterred from going by the road at all, or dse t~rn speedily back. But H they will still go on in it, they are certain to come to this terrible place. 3. They are ,:n a great hurry to get awa.y, and so they alter their course. They seem to repent of their previous journey altogether. "When be slew them, then they ronght him." "The devil was sick, the devil a monk would be." How often Pharaoh, when he had got to this miserable stage, made as if he would amend his way I And it very often seems as if such as he really had done so. The sham repentance is, to our poor bleared eyes, so much like the real, that we are quite deceived, and we help the sinner to deceive himself. 4. Then next is the stage of the hardened heart. The will unsubdued, the mind determined on its own way. Hidden away, deep down underneath the decorous disguise of a temporarily altered conduct, there is the stone-like heart, the will resolute in its own way. It is not going to change, though it may be prudent to seem for a time as if it were. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked." 5. Then there is reached, not long after, the first stage whence the wretched round began. The soul is back at its sin again. II. '.l.'HE POINT WHERE THE SOUL MAY BHEAK AWAY. It is at the repentance stage. Some one has said that what we call the ten plagues might rather be called Pharaoh's ten opportunities of turning from his sin to God. And undoubtedly they were such. The pang of repentance which he felt might have led right away from God's judgments. '"There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortnne." And in the affairs of the soul that tide at flood is the hour when God shows us the wretchedness of onr sin, and bids us turn to him. Ill. How TO DO THIS. 1. It is evidently possible. The road branches where you are: one way leads to God-the way along which God's voice is surely calling you; the other leads to the hardened heart,-it is the way along which you have come, 2. Now call upon God for help to answer his call. 3. Break away in actual conduct. Books, companions, amusements, all that is to you occasion of and temptation to sin; break away resolutely and at once from them; have done with them altogether. 4. All the while keep calling upon God. He has promised to save you. Put in the cheque of his promise, and claim payment of it. Trust him, expect him to make good bis word -and he wi/,l. Crede experto.-S. C.