52949364 psalm-147-commentary

PSALM 147 COMME TARY

PREFACE

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I TRODUCTIO

1. CALVI “This Psalm also incites the people of God to praise him upon two accounts;first, for the display of his power, goodness, wisdom, and other perfections in the commongovernment of the world, and the several parts of it, the heavens and the earth, but moreparticularly for his special goodness in cherishing and defending the Church which he haschosen of his free grace, in restoring it when fallen down, and gathering it when dispersed.”

2. In the Hebrew text, and in the Chaldee and Vulgate versions, this Psalm is withouta title, but in the Septuagint it is assigned to the days of Haggai and Zephaniah, thetitle being -- Allelouia Aggaiou kai Zacariou; and this may be regarded as a probablereference. In Psalm 147:2 Psalm 147:2 and Psalm 147:13 Psalm 147:13 there seems to be an allusion to the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Bishop Horsley entitles it -- "Thanksgiving ofthe returned captives. Perhaps composed for a Pentecost or Feast of Trumpets, after theRestoration." "Eben Ezra, and other Jewish writers, think that it foretells the futurerebuilding of Jerusalem, and the restoration of the Jews from their present captivity, andrefer it to the times of Messiah." -- Dr. Gill.

3. Spurgeon, “This is a specially remarkable song. In it the greatness and thecondescending goodness of the Lord are celebrated The God of Israel is set forth in hispeculiarity of glory as caring for the sorrowing, the insignificant, and forgotten. The poetfinds a singular joy in extolling one who is so singularly gracious. It is a Psalm of the cityand of the field, of the first and the second creations, of the common wealth and of thechurch. It is good and pleasant throughout.

DIVISIO . The, song appears to divide itself into three portions. From Ps 147:1-6, Jehovahis extolled for building up Zion, and blessing his mourners; from Ps 147:7-11, the likepraise is given because of his provision for the lowly, and his pleasure in them; and then,from Ps 147:12-20, he is magnified for his work on behalf of his people, and the power ofhis word in nature and in grace. Let it be studied with joyful gratitude.

Here is a Psalm of praise for all occasions, for it praises God for His power and concern inthe negative as well as positive aspects of life. We need to praise God in the gloom as wellas the glory of life. In fact, it is more important that we be able to praise Him in the gloom,for then we must need to know there is a light which darkness can never put out.

The God of the Bible is as concerned about the sorrows of the heart as He is about the starsof the heavens. He is the God of the depths and the heights; the God of inner and theouter; the God of the realm of the telescope and the microscope, and the realm where noscope can penetrate, but where His all embracing love can. God’s love spans the golfbetween the starry heaven and the sorry heart.

The view of the transcendent majesty of God is balanced with His imminent humanity.When we need a God to praise because life is full of joy, and we want to shout out thankyou to the universe-the God of the Bible is the God to praise. When, however, you feelalone in the darkness of sorrow with a heart ready to break-He is there in your darknesswith comfort. Two things all people possess-stars and sorrows. All men are equal in theirright to the stars, and all are equally subject to a broken heart. Only a God of the stars isbig enough to comfort the broken hearted. When death takes a loved one, what good is anycomfort that does not give hope beyond all the human powers. Only a love that goesbeyond the stars can give us any hope in such times.

4. Phillips-The goodness of God.His praise v. 1His pity v. 1His power v. 2-3His providence v. 7-9His pleasure v. 10-11His protection v. 12-14His purposes v. 15-18His precepts v. 18-20.

1. Praise the LORD. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

1. Barnes, “ye the Lord - -jah. See Psa_146:1.For it is good to sing praises unto our God - See the notes at Psa_92:1: “It is a good thing

to give thanks unto the Lord.”

For it is pleasant - See the notes at Psa_135:3: “Sing praises unto his name, for it ispleasant.” The Hebrew word is the same.And praise is comely - Becoming; proper. See the notes at Psa_33:1: “praise is comely forthe upright.” The Hebrew word is the same. If these psalms were composed for therededication of the temple, it would not be unnatural that much of the language employedshould be borrowed from earlier psalms with which the people were familiar.

2. Clarke, “is comely - is decent, befitting, and proper that every intelligent creature shouldacknowledge the Supreme Being: and as he does nothing but good to the children of men,so they should speak good of his name.

3. Gill, “ye the Lord,.... When he shall reign, as Kimchi connects this psalm with thepreceding; the arguments used to engage men to this work are taken partly from thenature of it, as in the next clauses; and partly from what the Lord is and does, as in thefollowing verses;

for it isgood to sing praises unto our God; it being agreeably to his revealed will, what heenjoins, approves of, and accepts, and is profitable to his people, as well as makes his glory;see Psa_92:1. Some render it, "because he isgood", as in Psa_106:1; but the accents, andwhat follows, will not admit of this sense;

for it ispleasant; to our God; with which the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Ethiopic, andArabic versions, join this clause; the sacrifice of praise is more pleasing to the Lord thanany ceremonial sacrifice, especially when offered from a grateful heart in the name ofChrist, and with a view to his glory; and it is pleasant to saints themselves, when grace is inexercise, and they make melody in their hearts to the Lord;

and praise is comely: is due to the Lord, and becomes his people to give it to him; it is buttheir reasonable service, and a beautiful and lovely sight it is to see the chosen, redeemed,and called of the Lamb, harping with their harps, and singing the song of redeeming love.

4. Henry, “duty of praise is recommended to us. It is not without reason that we are thuscalled to it again and again: Praise you the Lord(Psa_147:1), and again (Psa_147:7), Sing

unto the Lord with thanksgiving, sing praise upon the harp to our God(let all our praises bedirected to him and centre in him), for it is goodto do so; it is our duty, and therefore goodin itself; it is our interest, and therefore good for us. It is acceptable to our and it answersthe end of our creation. The law for it is holy, just, and good; the practice of it will turn to agood account. It is good, for 1. It is pleasant. Holy joy or delight are required as theprinciple of it, and that is pleasant to us as men; giving glory to God is the design andbusiness of it, and that is pleasant to us as saints that are devoted to his . Praising God iswork that is its own wages; it is heaven upon earth; it is what we should be in as in ourelement. 2. It is comely; it is that which becomes us as reasonable creatures, much more aspeople in covenant with God. In giving honour to God we really do ourselves a great deal of

honour.

5. K&D, “Hallelujah, as in Psa_135:3, is based upon the fact, that toof our God, or tocelebrate our God in song ( זמר with an accusative the object, as in Ps 30:13, andfrequently), is a discharge of duty that reactsand beneficially upon ourselves: “comely is ahymn of praise”(taken from Psa_33:1), both in respect of the worthiness of God to bepraised,of the gratitude that is due to Him. Instead of זמר or לזמר, Psa_92:2, the expressionis זמרה, a form of the infin. Piel, which at least can still be proved to be possible by ליסרה inLev_26:18. The two כי are co-ordinate, and כי־נעים no more refers to God here than inPsa_135:3, as Hitzig supposes when hePsa_147:1so that it reads: “Praise ye Jah because Heis good, play untoGod because He is lovely.” Psa_92:2shows that כי־טוב can refer to ; butand טוב said of God is contrary to the custom and spirit the Old Testament, whereas נעים.are also in Psa_133:1predicates of a subject that is set forth in the infinitive form נעים

6. Calvin, “Praise ye God, etc. Though the benefits he speaks of are such as Godextends to all men indiscriminately, it is plain that he addresses more especiallyGod's people, who alone behold his works in an enlightened manner, whereasstupidity and blindness of mind deprive others of their understanding. Nor is hissubject confined to the common benefits of God, but the main thing which hecelebrates is his mercy, as shown to his chosen people. That the Church may addressitself to the praises of God with more alacrity, he states that this kind of exercise isgood, delightful, and pleasant, by which he indirectly censures a sin which is all butuniversal of becoming wearied at the very mention of God, and counting it ourhighest pleasure to forget both God and ourselves, that we may give way tounrestrained indulgence. To teach men to take a delight in this religious exercise, thePsalmist reminds them that praise is comely, or desirable. For the term hwan, navah,may be rendered either way.

7. “Hallelujah begins and ends this sound. In it we see three things about praise-its profit,its pleasure, and its prosperity. Praise is both a duty and a delight. John Livingstone said,“A line of praise is worth a page of prayer.” He wanted to stir up believers to praise more.And you notice in the book of Psalms, as it gets near its close, prayer is almost forgotten.The four last Psalms are just a burst of praise. The stream is spread: It is not shallower, itis deeper, but it is just joining the ocean, and it is all praise, praise to God.” We see dutyand delight, beauty and benefit. Rudolf Stier, “There are many among us who never sing,except when adding their voices to the voice of the church, and therefore they sing so badlythere. ot that a harsh song from a good heart is unacceptable to God, but he should haveour best.” The joy of heaven must enter us if we are to enter the joy of heaven. unknown

8. Spurgeon, “To one and all of the true seed of Israel the Psalmist acts as choir master,and cries, "Praise ye the Lord." Such an exhortation may fitly be addressed to all thosewho owe anything to the favor of God; and which of us does not? Pay him we cannot, butpraise him we will, not only now, but for ever. "For it is good to sing praises unto our God."

It is good because it is right; good because it is acceptable with God, beneficial to ourselves,and stimulating to our fellows. The goodness of an exercise is good argument with goodmen for its continual practice. Singing the divine praises is the best possible use of speech:

it speaks of God, for God, and to God, and it does this in a joyful and reverent manner.Singing in the heart is good, but singing with heart and voice is better, for it allows othersto join with us. Jehovah is our God, our covenant God, therefore let him have the homageof our praise; and he is so gracious and happy a God that our praise may best be expressedin joyful song. For it is pleasant; and praise is comely. It is pleasant and proper, sweet andsuitable to laud the Lord Most High. It is refreshing to the taste of the truly refined mind,and it is agreeable to the eye of the pure in heart: it is delightful both to hear and to see awhole assembly praising the Lord. These are arguments for song service which men wholove true piety, real pleasure, and strict propriety will not despise. Please to praise, forpraise is pleasant: praise the Lord in the beauty of holiness, for praise is comely. Whereduty and delight, benefit and beauty unite, we ought not to be backward. Let each readerfeel that he and his family ought to constitute a choir for the daily celebration of the praisesof the Lord.

8B. Spurgeon, “Praise ye the Lord, or Hallelujah: The flow of the broad river of theBook of Psalms ends in a cataract of praise. The present Psalm begins and endswith Hallelujah. Jehovah and happy praise should ever be associated in the mindof a believer. Jove was dreaded, but Jehovah is beloved. To one and all of thetrue seed of Israel the Psalmist acts as choir master, and cries, "Praise ye theLord." Such an exhortation may fitly be addressed to all those who owe anythingto the favour of God; and which of us does not? Pay him we cannot, but praisehim we will, not only now, but for ever. "For it is good to sing praises unto our

God." It is good because it is right; good because it is acceptable with God,beneficial to ourselves, and stimulating to our fellows. The goodness of anexercise is good argument with good men for its continual practice. Singing thedivine praises is the best possible use of speech: it speaks of God, for God, and toGod, and it does this in a joyful and reverent manner. Singing in the heart isgood, but singing with heart and voice is better, for it allows others to join withus. Jehovah is our God, our covenant God, therefore let him have the homage ofour praise; and he is so gracious and happy a God that our praise may best beexpressed in joyful song. For it is pleasant; and praise is comely. It is pleasantand proper, sweet and suitable to laud the Lord Most High. It is refreshing to thetaste of the truly refined mind, and it is agreeable to the eye of the pure in heart:it is delightful both to hear and to see a whole assembly praising the Lord. Theseare arguments for song service which men who love true piety, real pleasure, andstrict propriety will not despise. Please to praise, for praise is pleasant: praise theLord in the beauty of holiness, for praise is comely. Where duty and delight,benefit and beauty unite, we ought not to be backward. Let each reader feel thathe and his family ought to constitute a choir for the daily celebration of thepraises of the Lord.

9. Treasury of David, “Verse 1. Praise ye the Lord. Alleluia. An expression in sound verysimilar to this seems to have been used by many nations, who can hardly be supposed to

have borrowed it from the Jews. Is it impossible that this is one of the most ancientexpressions of devotion? From the Greeks using ih, as a solemn beginning and ending oftheir hymns to Apollo, it should seem that they knew it; it is said also to have been heardamong the Indians in America, and Alia, Alla, as the name of God, is used in great part ofthe East: also in composition. What might be the primitive stock which has furnished suchspreading branches?—Augustin Calmer, 1672-1757.

Prayer is to get, and praise is to give.

Verse 1. There is no heaven, either in this world, or the world to come, for people who donot praise God. If you do not enter into the spirit and worship of heaven, how should thespirit and joy of heaven enter into you? Selfishness makes long prayers, but love makesshort prayers, that it may continue longer in praise.—John Pulsford, 1857.

2. The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel.

1. “This was literally done as the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.The Jewish concept eliminates all the means and goes directly back to the source. In ourWestern thinking we are concerned about means and what is seen and this leaves God outof much, and all is done by human hands. For the Jew even while laying bricks they saythe Lord is doing it.

Hengstenberg and others feel this is written for celebrating the completed work as seen in eh. 12:27-43. God is a builder in the physical realm as well as the spiritual. He is in thebuilding business and in the restoration business. He delights in restoring what sin hasdestroyed. ature reveals God’s nature, for it delights to restore what looks dead andbring it back to life. Man is a builder because he is made in God’s image.

David was restored and became the one God used to build up Jerusalem. o defeat is everfinal for God’s people, for God will restore them. Here are men who are outcasts and therejects of humanity, yet the Lord gathers them.”

2. Barnes, “The Lord doth build up Jerusalem - He builds up the walls; herestores the city; he has caused the temple to be reconstructed. This languagewould be applicable to a return from the captivity. There may be an allusionhere to the language in Psa_102:16 : “When the Lord shall build up Zion, heshall appear in his glory.” See the notes at that passage. What is there spoken ofas what would be in the future is here spoken of as accomplished, and as aground of praise.

He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel - Those who have been exiled from their

native land, and who have been scattered as outcasts in a foreign country. This isappropriate language to use on the supposition that the psalm was composed after thereturn from the exile, for it is in such language that that return was predicted by theprophets. Isa_11:12: “and he shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together thedispersed of Judah,” etc. Isa_56:8: “the Lord God which gathereth the outcasts of Israel,”etc.

3. The Lord doth build up - The psalmist appears to see the walls rising underhis eye, because the outcasts of Israel, those who had been in captivity, are nowgathered together to do the work.

4. Gill, “ The Lord doth build up Jerusalem,.... Literally, after the Babylonishcaptivity, according to some; or rather when taken from the Jebusites by David;or spiritually the church, which is often called Jerusalem, even the Gospelchurch, of which Christ is the builder, his ministers are instruments, his peopleare the materials, and which, though now greatly fallen to decay, will be rebuiltby him in the latter day; when his work will be revived among his saints, hisGospel more powerfully preached, his ordinances more purely administered,and multitudes of souls converted; and which will be matter of praise andthanksgiving, as it is now matter of prayer; see Psa_51:18;

he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel; the exiles from Babylon, as some; or rathersuch who in the times of the judges had been carried captive by their neighbours, or fledtheir cities, in the times of Saul for fear of the Philistines, and who were gathered to theirown country, cities, and houses, when David began to reign. Spiritually this regards thewhole Israel of God, the elect of God, whether Jews or Gentiles, and the outcasts of them;so called, not because ever cast out or cast off by the Lord, being received into his favour,covenant, and church; but either because cast out of the company of profane men, as eviland unworthy; or cast out of Israel, the church of God, very justly, for offences given; but,being brought to repentance, are restored and gathered in again: or rather this mayrepresent the Lord's people as in a state of nature, like the wretched infant cast out into theopen field, scattered up and down in the world, in a state of distance from God, Christ, andhis people; these are gathered by Christ in redemption, who came to seek and collect themtogether; and by his spirit in conversion, when he gathers them to himself, and into hisfold; and this, as it is an occasion of joy to angels and saints, is matter of praise andthanksgiving to the outcasts themselves, thus gathered in. The Septuagint render it, to thedispersion or dispersed of Israel; see Joh_7:35.

5. Henry, “ The care he takes of his chosen people, Psa_147:2. Is Jerusalem to be raised outof small beginnings? Is it to be recovered out of its ruins? In both cases, The Lord builds upJerusalem. The gospel-church, the Jerusalem that is from above, is of this building. Heframed the model of it in his own counsels; he founded it by the preaching of his gospel; headds to it daily such as shall be saved, and so increases it. He will build it up unto

perfection, build it up as high as heaven. Are any of his people outcasts? Have they madethemselves so by their own folly? He gathers them by giving them repentance and bringingthem again into the communion of saints. Have they been forced out by war, famine, orpersecution? He opens a door for their return; many that were missing, and thought to belost, are brought back, and those that were scattered in the cloudy and dark day aregathered together again.

6. K&D2-6, “In Psa_147:2 the praise begins, and at the same time the confirmation of thedelightful duty. Jahve is the builder up of Jerusalem, He brings together ( כנס as in Ezekiel,the later wozd for אסף and קבץ) the outcasts of Israel (as in Isa_11:12; Isa_56:8); thebuilding of Jerusalem is therefore intended of the rebuilding up, and to the dispersion ofIsrael corresponds the holy city laid in ruins. Jahve healeth the heart-broken, as He hasshown in the case of the exiles, and bindeth up their pains (Psa_16:4), i.e., smartingwounds; רפא, which is here followed by חבש, also takes to itself a dative object in otherinstances, both in an active and (Isa_6:10) an impersonal application; but for שבורי לב theolder language says נשברי לב, Psa_34:19, Isa_61:1. The connection of the thoughts, whichthe poet now brings to the stars, becomes clear from the primary passage, Isa_40:26, cf.Isa_40:27. To be acquainted with human woe and to relieve it is an easy and small matterto Him who allots a number to the stars, that are to man innumerable (Gen_15:5), i.e., whohas called them into being by His creative power in whatever number He has pleased, andyet a number known to Him (מנה, the part. praes., which occurs frequently in descriptionsof the Creator), and calls to them all names, i.e., names them all by names which are theexpression of their true nature, which is well known to Him, the Creator. What Isaiah says(Isa_40:26) with the words, “because of the greatness of might, and as being strong inpower,” and (Isa_40:28) “His understanding is unsearchable,” is here asserted inPsa_147:5 (cf. Psa_145:3): great is our Lord, and capable of much (as in Job_37:23, שגיאand to His understanding there is no number, i.e., in its depth and fulness it cannot be ,(כח defined by any number. What a comfort for the church as it traverses its ways, that areoften so labyrinthine and entangled! Its Lord is the Omniscient as well as the AlmightyOne. Its history, like the universe, is a work of God's infinitely profound and richunderstanding. It is a mirror of gracious love and righteous anger. The patient sufferers (on the other ,(רשעים) malevolent sinners ;(as in Psa_146:9 מעודד ) He strengthens (ענויםhand, He casts down to the earth ( עדי־ארץ, cf. Isa_26:5), casting deep down to the groundthose who exalt themselves to the skies.

7. Calvin, “Jehovah building up, etc. He begins with the special mercy of Godtowards his Church and people, in choosing to adopt one nation out of all others,and selecting a fixed place where his name might be called upon. When he ishere called the builder of Jerusalem, the allusion is not so much to the outwardform and structure, as to the spiritual worship of God. It is a common figure intreating of the Church to speak of it as a building or temple. The meaning is,that the Church was not of human erection, but formed by the supernaturalpower of God; for it was from no dignity of the place itself that Jerusalembecame the only habitation of God in our world, nor did it come to this honor bycounsel, industry, effort or power of man, but because God was pleased toconsecrate it to himself. He employed the labor and instrumentality of menindeed in erecting his sanctuary there, but this ought never to take from his

grace, which alone distinguished the holy city from all others. In calling God theformer and architect of the Church, his object is to make us aware that by hispower it remains in a firm condition, or is restored when in ruins. Hence heinfers that it is in his power and arbitrament to gather those who have beendispersed. Here the Psalmist would comfort those miserable exiles who had beenscattered in various quarters, with the hope of being recovered from theirdispersion, as God had not adopted them without a definite purpose into onebody. As he had ordered his temple and altar to be erected at Jerusalem, andhad fixed his seat there, the Psalmist would encourage the Jews who were exilesfrom their native country, to entertain good hope of a return, intimating that itwas no less properly God's work to raise up his Church when ruined and fallendown, than to found it at first. It was not, therefore, the Psalmist's objectdirectly to celebrate the free mercy of God in the first institution of the Church,but to argue from its original, that God would not suffer his Church altogetherto fall, having once founded it with the design of preserving it for ever; for heforsakes not the work of his own hands. This comfort ought to be improved byourselves at the present period, when we see the Church on every side somiserably rent asunder, leading us to hope that all the elect who have beenadjoined to Christ's body, will be gathered unto the unity of the faith, althoughnow scattered like members torn from one another, and that the mutilated bodyof the Church, which is daily distracted, will be restored to its entireness; forGod will not suffer his work to fail.

In the following verse he insists upon the same truth, the figure suggesting thatthough the Church labor under, and be oppressed by many diseases, God willspeedily and easily recover it from all its wounds. The same truth, therefore, isevidently conveyed, under a different form of expression -- that the Church,though it may not always be in a flourishing condition, is ever safe and secure,and that God will miraculously heal it, as though it were a diseased body.”

8. Spurgeon, “The Jews rejoiced in the uprising of their capital from its ruins, and wetriumph in the growth of the church from among a godless world. He gathereth together the

outcasts of Israel; and thus he repairs the waste places, and causes the former desolations tobe inhabited. This sentence may relate to ehemiah and those who returned with him; butthere is no reason why it should not with equal fitness be referred to David, who, with hisfriends, was once an outcast, but ere long became the means of building up Jerusalem. Inany case, the Psalmist ascribes to Jehovah all the blessings enjoyed; the restoration of thecity and the restoration of the banished he equally traces to the divine hand. How clearlythese ancient believers saw the Lord present, working among them and for them!Spiritually we see the hand of God in the edification of the church, and in the ingatheringof sinners. What are men tinder conviction of sin but outcasts from God, from holiness,from heaven, and even from hope? Who could gather them from their dispersions, andmake citizens of them in Christ Jesus save the Lord our God? This deed of love and powerhe is constantly performing. Therefore let the song begin at Jerusalem our home, and letevery living stone in the spiritual city echo the strain; for it is the Lord who has brought

again his banished ones, and builded them together in Zion.

9. Treasury of David, “Verse 2. The Lord doth build up Jerusalem, etc. If this Psalm werewritten on occasion of the return from Babylon, and the rebuilding of the earthly city, theideas are to be transferred, as in other Psalms of the same kind, to a more importantrestoration from a much worse captivity, and to the building up of the church under thegospel, when Christ "gathered together in one the children of God that were scatteredabroad" (Joh 11:52); that is, in the words of our Psalm, he gathered together the outcasts of

Israel. So shall he again, at the resurrection, "gather together his elect from the fourwinds" (Mt 24:31), and "build up a Jerusalem", in which they shall serve and praise himfor ever.—George Horne.

Verse 2. The Lord doth build up Jerusalem, etc.

Jerusalem! Jerusalem! the blessing lingers yetOn the city of the chosen, where the Sabbath seal was set;And though her sons are scattered, and her daughters weep apart,While desolation, like a pall, weighs down each faithful heart;As the plain beside the waters, as the cedar on the hills,She shall rise in strength and beauty when the Lord Jehovah wills:He has promised her protection, and the holy pledge is good,'Tis whispered through the olive groves, and murmured by the flood,As in thee Sabbath stillness the Jordan's flow is heard,And by the Sabbath breezes the hoary trees are stirred.—Mrs. Hale, in "The Rhyme of Life."

Verse 2. He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. Wonder not that God calls together"the outcasts", and singles them out from every corner for a return; why can he not do this,as well as "tell the number of the stars, and call them all by their names"? There are noneof his people so despicable in the eye of man, but they are known and regarded by God.Though they are clouded in the world, yet they are the stars of the world; and shall Godnumber the inanimate stars in the heavens, and make no account of his living stars on theearth? o; wherever they are dispersed, he will not forget them: however they are afflicted,he will not despise them. The stars are so numerous that they are innumerable by man;some are visible and known by men, others lie more hid and undiscovered in a confusedlight, as those in the milky way; a man cannot see one of them distinctly. God knows all hispeople. As he can do what is above the power of man to perform, so he understands what isabove the skill of man to discover.—Stephen Charnock.

Verse 2. He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. David might well have written feelinglyabout the "outcasts", for he had himself been one; and even from Jerusalem, in his age,when driven forth from thence by his unnatural son, he went up by the ascent of Olivet,weeping and barefooted, and other "outcasts" with him, weeping also as they went.—Barton Bouchier.

3. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

1. Barnes, “healeth the broken in heart - primarily to the fact that he had healed those whowere crushed and broken in their long captivity, and that he had given them comfort byreturning them to their native land. At the same time, however, the language is madegeneral, as describing a characteristic of God that he does this; that it is his character to dothis. See the notes at Psa_34:18. See also Psa_51:17. Compare Isa_61:1; Luk_4:18.

And bindeth up their wounds - See the notes at Isa_1:6. Margin, griefs. The word refersto those who are afflicted with griefs and troubles. The reference is to mental sorrows; to aspirit; to a heart made sad in any way. God has provided healing for such; on such hebestows peace.

1B. F. B. Meyer, “How wonderful that these two qualities should blend in one Being! ThatGod tells the number of the stars is only what we should expect of Him. They are his flock,lying down on the fields of the heavens; and as a shepherd has a name for each of hischarge, so has God for the stars. But that He should be able to bend over one broken heartand bind it with his sympathy and heal its flowing wounds, this is wonderful, amazing,divine.

It is said that in a healthy man the clenched fist is about the size of the heart. So in God, hismight is the gauge of his mercy: his hand of his heart. The mountains of his strength showthe valleys of his tenderness.

Yet surely it must be so. The stars are after all only things, great masses of matter; whilsthearts are those of living, sentient beings which He made, redeemed, and loves. They arethe adornments of his House, whilst broken hearts are his children. Shall He have namesfor the one and no care for the other! This text is exquisitely illustrated in Jesus. ThroughHim God made the worlds; and by his pierced hands tears have been wiped and stiflingsobs silenced all through the ages. Is your heart bleeding? He knows, He cares, He loves, Hebends over and heals with exquisite sensitiveness and skill. Yea, the stars may fall fromheaven as untimely figs; the sun burn out as an extinct volcano; but He will never cease totend and comfort his own.

There is no sorrow, Lord, too light To bring to prayer to Thee;

There is no anxious care too slight To wake thy sympathy!

2. Clarke, “healeth the broken in heart - שבורי, the shivered in heart. From the root שבר

shabar, to break in pieces, we have our word shiver, to break into splinters, into shivers.The heart broken in pieces by a sense of God’s displeasure.

3. Gill, “healeth the broken in heart,.... Christ is a physician; many are the diseases of hispeople; he heals them all by his blood, stripes, wounds; and among the rest their brokenhearts, which none can cure but himself; hearts broken by the word, as a hammer,accompanied with a divine power; which have a true sense of sin, and godly sorrow for it;are truly contrite, such as the Lord has a respect unto, dwells with, and accepts of; andthese he heals, and only he, by pouring in oil and wine, as the good Samaritan; or byapplying pardoning grace and mercy to them, streaming through his blood;

and bindeth up their wounds; or "griefs" (n); and so gives them ease, health, and peace, forwhich they have abundant reason to call upon their souls to bless his name and sing hispraise; see Psa_103:1; compare with this Isa_61:1.

4. Henry, “comforts he has laid up for true penitents, Psa_147:3. They are broken in

heart,and wounded, humbled, and troubled, for sin, inwardly pained at the remembranceof it, as a man is that is sorely wounded. Their very hearts are not only pricked, but rent,under the sense of the dishonour they have done to God and the injury they have done tothemselves by sin. To those whom God heals with the consolations of his Spirit he speakspeace, assures them that their sins are pardoned and that he is reconciled to them, and somakes them easy, pours the balm of Gilead into the bleeding wounds, and then binds themup, and makes them to rejoice. Those who have had experience of this need not be calledupon to praise the Lord; for when he brought them out of the horrible pit,and set their feet

upon a rock,he put a new song into their mouths,Psa_40:2, Psa_40:3. And for this let otherspraise him also.

5. Jamison, “applicable to the captive Israelites, this is a general and precious truth.

6. Great Texts, “THE old Hebrew Psalmist, by placing in striking contrast the infinitelygreat and the infinitely little, brings out, in the most effective way possible, the providenceof God as at once comprehensive enough to superintend the interests of the collective universe, and kindly and careful enough not to neglect the smallest individual. While Hisomniscient eye numbers the innumerable stars, His gentle touch heals the broken heart. While His spoken word holds the glistening planets to their spheres, His tender hand bindsup our bleeding wounds. These are old, very old thoughts, the imaginings of ancientHebrew men, who little dreamed of the strange secrets hidden in the earth beneath theirfeet, or in the heaven above their heads ; but, though between their day and ours liecenturies crowded with the most splendid discoveries man has made, yet neither sciencenor philosophy has ever proclaimed a truth that can match in sublimity, equal in beauty, orrival in its wealth of eternal human interest, this old Hebrew faith " He healeth the brokenin heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars ; he giveth themall their names."

The Psalmist brings together here countless stars and broken hearts. It is not easy for us toget these two thoughts into our minds at the same time. Still harder is it for us to thinkthem as one thought. It seems such a far cry from all the stars of heaven to one poorbleeding heart, from those myriad points of fire to a few human tears. We see the sweep ofthe stars, and we walk in the shadow of pain ; but in the bitter things we suffer, how littleuse we make of the great things we see ! One idea excludes another that really belongs to it.We have not a large enough mental grasp. We look up at the stars and we forget our littleworld ; we look out upon our little world and we forget the stars. We lose the years in thethought of the hour, and the hour in the thought of the ages. We seem unable to hold on toa great thought when we are in one of life s narrow places ; yet it is just in that narrowplace that the great thought can do most for us. We live by hours, and so we count byhours. We are pilgrims, so our standard of measurement is a step. In our fragmentarythinking we draw dividing lines across the undivided, and fail to see that the limited andthe illimitable are not two things but one. But the Psalmist brought stars and broken heartstogether.”

Broken hearts appeal to God in a way that the most brilliant stars cannot do. The planetswhirl through space, but do not know it. They are safe but blind, deaf, inert masses. Theyrespond to the will of their Creator, but they are not conscious of a Father s love. Amidthose vast glories our Father can find no room for His pity, no response to His love, nothingthat He can bend over to heal and to bless. The stars are not the true sphere of God, but theheart. The heart is the sphere of His love, the realm of His pity. What God does is seenamong the stars, but what God is, that only the broken heart can know.

The God of the multitude is also the God of the individual soul. He attends to theinnumerable host and to the single unit. Where we hear but a distant murmuring He hearsthe separate beating of every heart. This is one great distinction between natural andrevealed religion, for the one thing that natural religion cannot do is to assure us of theindividual care of God. The god of natural religion is like the driver of some eastern caravan ; and he drives his caravan with skill unerring over the desert to the gleaming city.But he never halts for any bruised mortal, or waits to minister to any dying woman, oreven for a moment checks his team to ease the agonies of any child. That is the god ofnatural religion the mighty tendency that makes for righteousness. Imperially careful ofthe whole, he is sovereignly careless of the one. And over against that god, so dark andterrible, there stands for ever the God of revelation, saying in infinite and individualmercy, " I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob." He, too, is making for a city which hath foundations, and whose streets are golden. But He has an ear for every feeblecry, a great compassion for every bruised heart, and a watchful pity, like a mother s pity,for lips that are craving for a little water. It was a great thought which St. Peter utteredwhen he said to all who read, " He careth for you." But St. Paul was nearer the heart of theEternal when he said, " He loved me, and gave himself for me."

See Isa. 61:1. It is not only broken walls but broken hearts are his speciality. The O. T.had their Great Physician also. God combines the lofty and lowly, the majestic and themerciful, sovereignty and sympathy, power and pity. God cares not only for the mighty

magnitude for the stars but for the lowly broken heart. Matter does matter to God, but notas much as persons. There is no sorrow, Lord, too light to bring in prayer to thee;There isno anxious care to slight to wake thy sympathy.”

7. Treasury of David, “ He healeth the broken in heart. Hence observe, that Christ justifies

and sanctifies; for that is the meaning.

1. First, because God hath gives Christ grace to practise for the sake of the broken in, heart;

and therefore if this be his grace, to heal the broken hearted, certainly he will heal them."The Spirit of the Lord is upon me", etc. "He hath sent me to heal the broken hearted",etc.: Lu 4:18. If he be created master of this art, even for this purpose, to heal the broken inheart, he will verily heal them, and none but them. It is not like Hosander and Hippocrates,whose father appointed them both to be physicians; he appointed his son Hippocrates to bea physician of horses, yet he proved a physician for men; he appointed Hosander to be aphysician for men, and he proved a physical for horses. Jesus is not like these; no, no; hewill heal those whom he was appointed to heal.

2. Because Christ hath undertaken to do it. When a skilful Physician hath undertaken acure, he will surely do it: indeed, sometimes a good physician may fail, as Trajan'sphysician did, for he died under his hands; on whose tomb this was written, "Here liesTrajan the emperor, that may thank his physician that be died." But if Christ undertake it,thou mayest be sure of it; for he tells thee that art broken in heart that he hath undertakenit, he hath felt thy pulse already. Isa 57:15. He doth not only undertake it, but he saith hewill go visit his sick patient, he will come to thy bedside, yea, he will come and dwell withthee all the time of thy sickness; thou shalt never want anything, but he will be ready tohelp thee: thou needest not complain and say, "Oh, the physician is too far off, he will notcome at me." I dwell in the high places indeed, saith God, but yet I will come and dwellwith thee that art of an humble spirit. Thou needest not fear, saying, "Will a man cure hisenemies? I have been an enemy to God's glory, and will he yet cure me?" Yea, saith Christ,if thou be broken in heart I will bind thee up.

3. Thirdly, because this is Christ's charge, and he will look to his own calling: "The Lordhath sent me to bind up the broken hearted" (Isa 61:1) ... either needest thou fear thineown poverty, because thou hast not a fee to give him; for thou mayest come to him by wayof begging; he will look to thee for nothing; for, "To him will I look that is poor", etc.: Isa66:2.

4. Fourthly, none but the broken in heart will take physic of Christ. ow this is a physician'sdesire, that his patient would cast himself upon him; if he will not, the physician hath nodesire to meddle with him. ow none but the broken in heart will take such physic asChrist gives, and therefore he saith, "To him will I look that is of a broken heart, andtrembles at any words": Isa 56:2. When I bid him take such a purge, saith God, hetrembles, and he takes it.—William Fenner, in a Sermon entitled, "The Sovereign Virtue of

the Gospel," 1647.

Verse 3.

O Thou who dry'st the mourner's tear,How dark this world would be,If, when deceived and wounded here,We could not fly to Thee!

The friends, who in our sunshine live,When winter comes are flown;And he who has but tears to giveMust weep those tears alone.

But Thou wilt heal that broken heart,Which, like the plants that throwTheir fragrance from the wounded part,Breathes sweetness out of woe.

When joy no longer soothes or cheers,And e'en the hope that threwA moment's sparkle o'er our tearsIs dimmed and vanished too;

Oh! who would bear life's stormy doom,Did not Thy wing of loveCome, brightly wafting through the gloomOur peace branch from above?

Then sorrow, touched by Thee, grows brightWith more than rapture's ray;As darkness shows us worlds of lightWe never saw by day!—Thomas Moore, 1779-1852.

Verse 3. He healeth the broken in heart. The broken in heart is one whose heart is affectedwith the evil of sin, and weeps bitter tears on account of it; one who feels sorrow, shame,and anguish, on the review of his past sinful life, and his base rebellion against a righteousGod. Such a one has a broken heart. His heart is broken at the sight of his own ingratitude—the despite done by him to the strivings of the Holy Spirit. His heart is broken when heconsiders the numberless invitations made to him in the Scriptures, all of which he haswickedly slighted and despised. His heart is broken at the recollection of a thousand kindprovidences to him and to his family, by day and by night, all sent by God, and intendedfor his moral, spiritual, and eternal benefit, but by him basely and wantonly abused. Hisheart is broken at the consideration of the love and compassion of the adorable Redeemer;the humiliation of his birth; the devotedness of his life; the reproach, the indignity of hissufferings; the ignominy and anguish of his death. His heart is broken when his conscienceassures him that all this humiliation, this suffering, this death, was for him, who had sodeliberately and repeatedly refused the grace which the blood and righteousness of Christhas purchased. It is the sight of Calvary that fills him with anguish of spirit, thatoverwhelms him with confusion and self abasement. While he contemplates the amazingscene, he stands, he weeps, he prays, he smites upon his breast, he exclaims", God bemerciful to me a sinner!" And adds, "O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me

from the body of this death?"

The broken in heart must further be understood as one who seeks help from God alone,and will not be comforted till he speaks peace to his soul. The act of God, in the scripturebefore us, is the moral and spiritual health of man—of man, who had brought disease onhimself—of man, by his own rebellion against his Creator of man, who had, in tenthousand ways, provoked the justice of heaven, and deserved only indignation and eternalwrath—the health of man, whom, in an instant, he could hurl to utter destruction. Thesaving health here proposed is the removal of all guilt, however contracted, and of allpollution, however rooted. It is the communication of God's favour, the riches of his grace,the implantation of his righteousness. To effect the healing of the broken heart, God has,moreover, appointed a Physician, whose skill is infallible, whose goodness and care areequal to his skill. That Physician is none other than the Son of God. In that character hashe been made known to us. "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that besick." The prophet Isaiah introduces his advent in the most sublime language: "He hathsent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the openingof the prison to them that are bound."

The health, the moral and spiritual soundness of the soul, my brethren, is derived from theatoning sacrifice of Christ. The grace of God flows to the broken in heart through hismanhood, his godhead, his righteousness, his truth; through his patience, his humility, hisdeath and passion; through his victory over sin, his resurrection, and ascension intoheaven. Here, thou broken in heart, thou sorrowing, watching penitent; here is themedicine, here the Physician, here the cure, here the health thou art seeking. The healing ofthe broken in heart must be further understood as effected through the agency of the HolySpirit. It is done by the Spirit of God, that it may be done, and that it may be well done;and that all the praise, the glory of that which is done, may be ascribed to the plenitude, thefreeness, the sovereignty of his grace. The Spirit of God, however, uses means. The meansof grace are appointed expressly for this purpose; the blessing of health is there applied.There, under the sound of the everlasting gospel, while looking by faith to Christ, andappropriating his merits, he healeth the broken in heart. There, while commemorating thedying love of Christ, and applying its benefits by faith to the soul, he healeth the broken inheart. There, while the soul, sensible of his goodness, is offering up the song of praise, andtrusting alone in his mercy, he healeth the broken in heart. There, while prostrate at hisfootstool, supplicating his grace, resting on his finished redemption, he healeth the brokenin heart. In the private acts of devotion the Spirit of God also is near to bless and save.There, while reading and believing his holy Word, while meditating on its meaning; there,while in secret, solemn prayer, the soul takes hold on God in Christ Jesus; he healeth thebroken in heart.—Condensed from a Sermon by Thomas Blackley, 1826.

Verse 3. He healeth the broken in, heart. I do indeed most sincerely sympathise with you inthis fresh sorrow. "Thy breaking waves pass over me." The trial, so much the heavier thatit is not the first breaking in, but the waters continuing still, and continuing to rise, untildeep calleth unto deep at the noise of God's water spouts, "Yea, and thy billows all." Insuch circumstances, we are greatly tempted to wonder if it be true, of the Holy One in themidst of us, that a bruised reed he will not break, that the smoking flax he will not quench.We may not, however, doubt it, nor even in the day of our grief and our desperate sorrow,

are we at liberty to call it in question. Our God is the God of the broken heart. The deepersuch a heart is smitten, and the more it bleeds, the more precious it is in his sight, thenearer he draws to it, the longer he stays there. "I dwell with him who is of a contriteheart." The more abundantly will he manifest the kindness and the glory of his power, intenderly carrying it in his bosom, and at last binding up its painful wounds. "He healeththe broken in heart." "O, thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, Iwill lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires." Weeping aomi said, "Call me Marah, for the Lord hath dealt very bitterly with me." Afterward,happy aomi took the child of her own Ruth, and laid it in her bosom, and sweetly foundthat the days of her mourning were ended. My dear friend, this new gash of deep sorrowwas prepared for you by the Ancient of Days. His Son—and that Son is love—watched overthe counsels of old, to keep and to perform them to the minutest circumstance.—John

Jameson, 1838.

8. Unknown author, “The word “broken” means “to burst, to break into pieces, to crushand to smash.” Some of you feel that way right now. Your emotional pain isoverwhelming."The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into theinnermost parts of the belly" - Proverbs 26:22."For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.“ - Psalm 109:22 People say and do things to hurt us (Proverbs 18:8)

A wounded heart occurs when someone or something brings hurt to your emotions. Hearts are broken through sorrow. Hearts are broken through disappointment. Hearts arebroken through bereavement. Hearts are broken in ten thousand ways, for this is a heart-breaking world

9. Spurgeon, “The next verse finely declares the power of God. "He telleth the number ofthe stars; he calleth them by their names." Perhaps there is nothing which gives us a noblerview of the greatness of God than a contemplation of the starry heavens. When by night welift up our eyes and behold him who hath created all these things; when we remember thathe bringeth out their host by number, calleth them all by their names, and that by thegreatness of his power not one falleth, then indeed we adore a mighty God, and our soulnaturally falls prostrate in reverential awe before the throne of him who leads the host ofheaven, and marshals the stars in their armies. But the Psalmist has here placed anotherfact side by side with this wondrous act of God; he declares that the same God who leadeththe stars, who telleth the number of them, and calleth them by their names, healeth thebroken in heart and bindeth up their wounds. The next time you rise to some idea of God,by viewing the starry floor of his magnificent temple above, strive to compel yourcontemplation to this thought, that the same mighty hand which rolls the stars along, putsliniments around the wounded heart; that the same being who spoke worlds into existence,and now impels those ponderous globes through their orbits, does in his mercy cheer thewounded, and heal the broken in heart.

We will not delay you by a preface, but will come at once to the two thoughts: first, here isa great ill—a broken heart; and secondly, a great mercy—"he healeth the broken in heart,and bindeth up their wounds."

Man is a double being: he is composed of body and soul, and each of the portions of manmay receive injury and hurt. The wounds of the body are extremely painful, and if theyamount to a breaking of the frame the torture is singularly exquisite. Yet God has in hismercy provided means whereby wounds may be healed and injuries repaired. The soldierwho retires from the battle-field, knows that he shall find a hand to extricate the shot, andcertain ointments and liniments to heal his wounds. We very speedily care for bodilydiseases; they are too painful to let us slumber in silence: and they soon urge us to seek aphysician or a surgeon for our healing. Oh, if we were as much alive to the more seriouswounds of our inner man; if we were as deeply sensible of spiritual injuries, how earnestlyshould we cry to "the Beloved Physician," and how soon should we prove his power tosave. Stabbed in the most vital part by the hand of our original parent, and from head tofoot disabled by our own sin, we yet remain insensible as steel, careless and unmoved,because, though our wounds are known they are not felt. We should count that soldierfoolish, who would be more anxious to repair a broken helmet than an injured limb. Arenot we even more to be condemned, when we give precedence to the perishing fabric of thebody, and neglect the immortal soul? You, however, who have broken hearts, can no longerbe insensible; you have felt too acutely to slumber in indifference. Your bleeding spirit criesfor consolation: may my glorious Master give me a word in season for you. We intend toaddress you upon the important subject of broken hearts, and the great healing providedfor them.

I. Let us commence with THE GREAT ILL—a broken heart. What is it? We reply, thereare several forms of a broken heart. Some are what we shall call naturally broken, andsome are spiritually so. We will occupy a moment by mentioning certain forms of this evil,naturally considered; and verily our task would be a dreary one, if we were called upon towitness one tithe of the misery endured by those who suffer from a broken heart.Therehave been hearts broken by desertion. A wife has been neglected by her husband who wasonce the subject of her attachment, and whom even now she tenderly loves. Scorned anddespised by the man who once lavished upon her every token of his affection, she hasknown what a broken heart means. A friend is forsaken by one upon whom he leaned, towhose very soul he was knit, so that their two hearts had grown into one; and he feels thathis heart is broken, for the other half of himself is severed from him. When Ahithophelforsakes David, when the kind friend unto whom we have always told our sorrows betraysour confidence, the consequence may possibly be a broken heart. The desertion of a man byhis fellows, the ingratitude of children to their parents, the unkindness of parents to theirchildren, the betrayal of secrets by a comrade, the changeableness and fickleness of friends,with other modes of desertion which happen in this world, have brought about brokenhearts. We know not a more fruitful source of broken hearts than disappointment in theobjects of our affections—to find that we have been deceived where we have placed ourconfidence. It is not simply that we leaned upon a broken reed, and the reed has snapped—that were bad enough—but in the fall we fell upon a thorn which pierced our hearts to itscenter. Many have there been who have gone to their graves, not smitten by disease, notslain by the sword, but with a far direr wound that the sword could ever give, a moredesperate death than poison could ever cause. May you never know such agony.We have also seen hearts broken by bereavement. We have known tender wives who havelaid their husbands in the tomb, and who have stood by the grave-side until their very

heart did break for solitary anguish. We have seen parents bereaved of their belovedoffspring one after another; and when they have been called to hear the solemnwords,"Earth to earth, dust to dust, ashes to ashes," over the last of their children, theyhave turned away from the grave, bidding adieu to joy, longing for death, and abhorringlife. To such the world becomes a prison, cheerless, cold, unutterably miserable. The owland bittern seem alone to sympathize with them, an aught of joy in the wide world appearsto be but intended as a mockery to their misery. Divine grace, however, can sustain themeven here.How frequently might this be supposed to occur to our brave countrymen engaged in thepresent war. Do not they feel, and feel acutely, the loss of their comrades? You will perhapsimagine that the slaughter and death around them prevent the tender feelings of nature.You are enough mistaken, if so you dream. The soldier's heart may never know fear, but ithas not forgotten sympathy. The fearful struggle around renders it impossible to pay theusual court and homage at the gates of sorrow, but there is more of real grief ofttimes inthe hurried midnight funeral than in the flaunting pageantry of your pompous processions.Were it in our power to walk among the tents, we should find abundant need to use thewords of our text by way of cordial to many a warrior who has seen all his chosencompanions fall before the destroyer.Oh, ye mourners! seek ye a balm for your wounds—let me proclaim it unto you. Ye are notignorant of it, I trust, but let me apply that in which you already place your confidence.The God of heaven knows your sorrows, repair you to his throne, and tell your simple taleof woe. Then cast your burden on him, he will bear it—open your heart before him, he willheal it. Think not that you are beyond hope. You would be if there were no God of love andpity; but while Jehovah lives, the mourner need not despair.Penury has also contributed its share to the number of the army of misery. Pinching want,a noble desire to walk erect, without the crutch of charity, and inability to obtainemployment, have at times driven men to desperate measures. Many a goodly cedar hathwithered for lack of moisture, and so hath many a man pined away beneath thedeprivations of extreme poverty. Those who are blessed with sufficiency can scarcely guessthe pain endured by the sons of want, especially if they have once been rich. Yet, oh! childof suffering, be thou patient, God has not passed thee over in his providence. Feeder ofsparrows, he will also furnish you with what you need. Sit not down in despair; hope on,hope ever. Take up arms against a sea of troubles, and your opposition shall yet end yourdistresses. There is One who careth for you. One eye is fixed on you, even in the home ofyour destitution, one heart beats with pity for your woes, and a hand omnipotent shall yetstretch you out the needed help. The darkest cloud shall yet scatter itself in its season, theblackest gloom shall have its morning. He, if thou art one of his family, with bands of gracewill bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart.Multiplied also are the cares where disappointment and defeat have crushed the spirits. Thesoldier fighting for his country may see the ranks broken, but he will not be broken inheart, so long as there remains a single hope for victory. His comrade reels behind him, andhe himself is wounded, but with a shout he cries, "On! on!" and scales the ramparts. Swordin hand, still he goes, carrying terror among the foe, himself sustained by the prospect ofvictory. But let him once hear the shout of defeat where he hoped for triumph; let himknow that the banner is stained in the earth, that the eagle has been snatched from thestandard; let him once hear it said, "They fly, they fly!" let him see the officers and soldiers

flying in confusion; let him be well assured that the most heroic courage and the mostdesperate valor are of no avail, then his heart bursteth under a sense of dishonor, and he isalmost content to die because the honor of his country has been tarnished, and her gloryhas been stained in the dust. Of this, the soldiers of Britain know but little—may theyspeedily carve out a peace for us with their victorious swords! Truly, in the great conflict oflife we can bear any thing but defeat. Toils on toils would we endure to climb a summit, butif we must die ere we reach it, that were a brokenness of heart indeed. To accomplish theobject on which we have set our minds, we would spend our very heart's blood; but once letus see that our life's purpose is not to be accomplished; let us, when we hope to grasp thecrown, see that it is withdrawn, or other hands have seized it, then cometh brokenness ofheart. But let us remember, whether we have been broken in heart by penury or by defeat,that there is a hand which "bindeth up the broken in heart, and healeth all their wounds;"that even these natural breakings are regarded by Jehovah, who, in the plenitude of hismercy, giveth a balm for every wound to every one of his people. We need not ask, "Isthere no balm in Gilead? is there no physician there?" There is a balm, there is a physicianwho can heal all these natural wounds, who can give joy to the troubled countenance, takethe furrow from the brow, wipe the tear from the eye, remove the agitation from thebosom, and calm the heart now swelling with grief; for he "healeth the broken in heart,and bindeth up their wounds."But all that we have mentioned of woe and sorrow which the natural heart endures, is notsufficient to explain our text. The heart broken, not by distress or disappointment, but onaccount of sin, is the heart which God peculiarly delights to heal. All other sufferings mayfind a fearful center in one breast, and yet the subject of them may be unpardoned andunsaved; but if the heart be broken by the Holy Ghost for sin, salvation will be its ultimateissue, and heaven its result. At the time of regeneration, the soul is subject to an inwardwork, causing at the time considerable suffering. This suffering does not continue after thesoul has learned the preciousness of a Saviour's blood; but while it lasts it produces aneffect which is never forgotten in after life. Let none suppose that the pains we are about todescribe are the constant companions of an heir of heaven during his entire existence. Theyare like the torture of a great drunkard at the time of his reformation, rendered needful,not by the reformation, but by his old habits. So this broken heart is felt at the time of thatchange of which the Bible speaks, when it says: "Except a man be born again, he can notsee the kingdom of God." The fruit of the Spirit is afterwards joy and peace; but for aseason we must, if saved, endure much mental agony.Are any of you at the present moment disturbed in mind, and vexed in spirit, because youhave violated the commands of God? And are you anxious to know whether these feelingsare tokens of genuine brokenness and contrition? Hear me, then, while I briefly furnishyou with tests whereby you may discern the truth and value of your repentance.1. We can not conceive it possible that you are broken in heart if the pleasures of the worldare your delight. We may consent to call you amiable, estimable, and honorable, evenshould you mix somewhat in the amusements of life; but it would be a treason to yourcommon sense to tell you that such things are consistent with a broken heart. Will anyventure to assert that you gay reveler has a broken heart? Would he not consider it aninsult should you suggest it? Does the libidinous song now defiling the ear proceed from thelips of a broken-hearted sinner? Can the fountain, when filled with sorrow, send forth suchstreams as these? o, my friends; the wanton, the libidinous, the rioting, and the profane,

are too wise to lay claim to the title of broken-hearted persons, seeing that their claimwould be palpably absurd. They scorn the name, as mean and paltry, unworthy of a manwho loves free living, and counts religion cant.

But should there be one of you so entirely deceived by the evil spirit as to think yourself apartaker in the promises, while you are living in the lusts of the flesh, let me solemnly warnyou of your error. He who sincerely repents of sin will hate it, and find no pleasure in it;and during the season when his heart is broken, he will loathe, even to detestation, the veryapproach of evil. The song of mirth will then be as a dirge in his ear. "As he that pourethvinegar upon niter, so is he that singeth songs to a sad heart." If the man who makes merrywith sin be broken-hearted, he must be a prince of hypocrites, for he feigns to be worsethan he is. We know right well that the wounded spirit requires other cordials than thisworld can afford. A soul disturbed by guilt must be lulled to a peaceful rest by other musicthan carnal pleasures can afford it. The tavern, the house of vice, and the society of theprofligate, are no more to be endured by a contrite soul than the jostling of a crowd by awounded man.2. Again, we will not for one moment allow that a self-righteous man can have a brokenheart. Ask him to pray, and he thanks God that he is every way correct. What need has heto weep because of the iniquity of his life? for he firmly believes himself to be well-deserving, and far enough removed from guilt. He has attended his religious duties; he isexceedingly strict in the form of his devotions; or if he cares not for such things, he is, atany rate, quite as good as those who do. He was never in bondage to any man, but can lookto heaven without a tear for his sin. Do not conceive that I am painting an imaginary case,for there are unfortunately too many of these proud, self-exalting men. Will they be angrywith me when I tell them that they are no nearer heaven than those whom we reproved afew moments ago? or will they not be equally moved to wrath if I were so much as to hintthat they need to be broken in heart for their sin? evertheless, such is the case; andPharisees shall one day learn with terror, that self -righteousness is hateful to God.But what is a broken heart? I say, first, that a broken heart implies a very deep and

poignant sorrow on account of sin. A heart broken—conceive of that. If you could lookwithin and see every thing going on in this great mystery called man, you would marvel atthe wonders thereof; but how much more astonished would you be to see its heart notmerely divided in twain, but split into atoms. You would exclaim, "What misery must havedone this! What a heavy blow must have fallen here!" By nature the heart is of one solidpiece, hard as a nether millstone; but when God smites it, it is broken to pieces in deepsuffering. Some will understand me when I describe the state of the man who is feeling asorrow for sin. In the morning he bends his knee in prayer, but he feels afraid to pray. Hethinks it is blasphemy for him to venture near God's throne; and when he does pray at all,he rises with the thought: "God can not hear me, for he heareth not sinners." He goesabout his business, and is, perhaps, a little diverted; but at every interval the same blackthoughts roll upon him: "Thou art condemned already." Mark his person and appearance.A melancholy has rested upon him. At night he goes home, but there is little enjoyment forhim in the household. He may smile, but his smile ill conceals the grief which lurksunderneath. When again he bends the knee, he fears the shadows of the night; he dreads tobe on his bed, lest it should be his tomb; and if he lies awake, he thinks of death, the seconddeath, damnation, and destruction; or if he dreams, he dreams of demons, and flames ofhell. He wakes again, and almost feels the torture of which he dreamed. He wishes in the

morning it were evening, and at evening it were light. "I loathe my daily food," says he: "Icare for nothing; for I have not Christ. I have not mercy, I have not peace." He has set offrunning on the road to heaven, and he puts his fingers in his ears, and will hear of nothingelse. Tell him of a ball or concert!—it is nothing to him. He can enjoy nothing. You mightput him in a heaven, and it would be a hell to him. ot the chants of the redeemed, not thehallelujahs of the glorified, not the hymns of flaming cherubs, would charm woe out of thisman, so long as he is the subject of a broken heart. ow, I do not say that all must have thesame amount of suffering before they arrive at heaven. I am speaking of some who havethis especial misery of heart on account of sin. They are utterly miserable. As Bunyan hassaid: "They are considerably tumbled up and down in their souls." And conceive, that "asthe Lord their God liveth, there is but a step between themselves and eternal death." Oh,blessings on the Lord forever! if any of you are in that condition, here is the mercy!Though this wound be not provided for in earthly pharmacy, though there be found nophysician who can heal it, yet "he healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up theirwounds." It is a blessing to have a broken heart at all.Again, when a man has a broken heart, he not only feels sorrow for sin, but he feel himselfutterly unable to get rid of it. He who believes himself able to save himself has never knownthe meaning of a broken heart. Those who imagine that reformation can atone for the past,or secure righteousness for the future, are not yet savingly brought to know themselves. o,my friends, we must be humbled in the dust, and made to look for all in Christ, or else weshall be deceived after all. But are you driven out of yourself; are you like the woundedsoldier crying for some one else to carry you to the hospital of mercy, and longing for theaid of a mightier than yourself? then be of good cheer, there shall be found a greatdeliverance for you. So long as you trust in ceremonies, prayers, or good works, you shallnot fine eternal grace; but when stripped of all strength and power, you shall gain aglorious salvation in the Lord Jesus. If morality can join the pieces of a broken heart, thecement shall soon cease to bind, and the man shall again be as vile as ever. We must have anew heart and a right spirit, or vain will be all our hopes. eed I give any other description of the character I desire to comfort. I trust you arediscovered. Oh! my poor brother, I grieve to see thee in distress, but there is pardonthrough Jesus—there is forgiveness even for thee. What though your sins lie like amillstone on your shoulder, they shall not sink you down to hell. Arise! He, my graciousLord, calleth thee. Throw thyself at his feet, and lose thy griefs in his loving and cheeringwords. Thou art saved if thou canst say,

"A guilty, weak, and helpless worm,On Christ's kind arms I fall;

He is my strength and righteousness,My Jesus, and my all."

II. We have spoken a long time on the great ill of a broken heart; our second thought willbe the GREAT MERCY—"He healeth the broken in heart."First, he only does it. Men may alleviate suffering, they may console the afflicted and cheerthe distressed; but they can not heal the broken in heart, nor bind up their wounds. It isnot human eloquence, or mortal wisdom; it is not the oration of an Apollos, nor thewondrous words of a prince of preachers; it is the "still small voice " of God which aloneconfers the "peace which passeth all understanding." The binding of the heart is a thing

done immediately by God, ofttimes without any instrumentality whatever; and wheninstrumentality is used, it is always in such a way that the man does not extol theinstrument, but renders grateful homage to God. In breaking hearts, God uses mancontinually; repeated fiery sermons, and terrible denunciations do break men's hearts; butyou will bear me witness when your hearts were healed God only did it. You value theminister that broke you heart; but it is not often that we ascribe the healing to anyinstrumentality whatever. The act of justification is generally apart from all means: Godonly does it. I know not the man who uttered the words that were the means of relieving myheart: "Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth." I do not recollect what hesaid in the sermon, and I am sure I do not care to know. I found Jesus there and then, andthat was enough for me. When you get your wounds healed, even under a minister, it seemsas if it were not the minister who spoke; you never heard him speak like it in all you lifebefore. You say, "I have often heard him with pleasure, but he has outdone himself; before,

he spoke to my ear, but now, to my heart. We are some of us rejoicing in the liberty ofChrist, and walking in all the joy of the Spirit; but it is to God we owe our deliverance, andwe are grateful neither to man nor book, so much as to the great Physician who has takenpity on us. O that Jesus would walk through this Bethesda now. O, poor, sick dying man!does guilt weigh heavy on thy soul, turn not to any helper, save to him that sitteth on thethrone.Then he only can do it. I defy any of my brethren to bind up a broken heart. I have oftenlabored to do it, but could never effect it. I have said a word to console the mourner, but Ihave felt that I have done but little, or have perhaps put the wrong mixture in the cup. Heonly can do it. Some of you seek mercy through baptism, or the Lord's Supper, or regularattendance at the house of prayer. Some of you, again, have certain forms and observancesto which you attach saving value. As the Lord liveth, none of these things bind up thebroken in heart apart from the Holy Spirit; they are empty wind and air; you may havethem and be lost. You can have no peace and comfort unless you have immediate dealingswith God, who alone, as the great Physician, healeth the broken in heart. Ah! there aresome of you who go to your ministers with broken hearts, and say, "What shall I do?" Ihave heard of a preacher who told his anxious hearer, "You are getting melancholy; youhad better go to such and such a place of amusement; you are getting too dreary andmelancholy by half." O, to think of a nurse in a hospital administering poison, when sheought to be giving the true medicine! If he deserves to be hung who mixes poison with hisdrugs, how much more guilty is that man who tells a soul to seek for happiness where thereis none, who sends it to a carnal world for joy, when there is none to be found except inGod.Then again, God only may do it. Suppose we could heal your broken heart, it would begood for nothing. I do beseech the Lord that I may never get a broken heart healed, exceptit is by God. A truly-convinced sinner will always rather keep his heart broken than have ithealed wrongly. I ask you, who are suffering, whether you would not rather keep yourbroken heart as it is, than allow a bad physician to cure it for you, and so deceive you, andsend you to hell at last? I know your cry is, "Lord, let me know the worst of my case; usethe lancet; do not be afraid of hurting me; let me feel it all; cut the proud-flesh away ratherthan let it remain." But there are not a few who get their wounds glossed over by somepretended good works or duties. O, my hearer, let no man deceive you! Be not content witha name to live while you are really dead. Bad money may pass on earth, but genuine gold

alone will be received in heaven. Can you abide the fire?In vain your presumption when God shall come to examine you; you will not pass musterunless you have had a real healing from his hand. It is easy enough to get religious notionsand fancy yourself safe, but a real saving work is the work of God, and God alone. Seek notto the priest; he may console, but it is by deluding you. Seek not to your own self; for youmay soothe yourself into the sleep of perdition. See that thine heart be washed in the bloodof Jesus; be careful that the Holy Spirit has his temple in it; and may God, of his great andsovereign grace, look to thee that thou deceivest not thyself.But next, God will do it. That is a sweet thought. "He healeth the broken in heart;" heWILL do it. obody else can; nobody else may; but he WILL. Is thy heart broken? HeWILL heal it; he is sure to heal it; for it is written—and it can never be altered, for whatwas true three thousand years ago, is true now—"he healeth the broken in heart." Did Saulof Tarsus rejoice after three days of blindness? Yes, and you shall be delivered also. O, it isa theme for eternal gratitude, that the same God who in his loftiness and omnipotencestooped down in olden times to soothe, cherish, relieve, and bless the mourner, is even nowtaking his journeys of mercy among the penitent sons of men. O, I beseech him to comewhere thou art sitting, and put his hand inside thy soul, and if he finds there a broken heartto bind it up. Poor sinner, breathe thy wish to him; let thy sigh come before him, for "hehealeth the broken in heart." There thou liest wounded on the plain. "Is there nophysician?" thou criest; "is there none?" Around thee lie thy fellow-sufferers, but they arehelpless as thyself. Thy mournful cry cometh back without an answer, and space alonehears thy groan. Ah! the battle-field of sin has one kind visitor; it is not abandoned to thevultures of remorse and despair. I hear footsteps approaching; they are the gentle footstepsof Jehovah. In his hands there are no thunders, in his eyes no anger, on his lips nothreatening. See how he bows himself over the mangled heart! Hear how he speaks!"Come, now, and let us reason together," saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet,they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Andif the patient dreads to look in the face of the mighty being who addresses him, the sameloving mouth whispers, "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions, for my namessake." See how he washes every wound with sacred water from the side of Jesus; mark howhe spreads the ointment of forgiving grace, and binds around each wound the fair whitelinen, which is the righteousness of saints. Doth the mourner faint under the operation? heputs a cordial to his lips, exclaiming, "I have loved thee with an everlasting love." Yes, it istrue—most true—neither dream nor fiction, "HE HEALETH THE BROKE I HEART,A D BI DETH UP THEIR WOU DS."How condescending is the Lord of heaven, thus to visit poor forlorn man. The queen haskindly visited the hospitals of our soldiers to cheer, by her royal words, her loyal defenders,by this she has done herself honor, and her soldiers love her for it. But when the God of thewhole earth, the infinite Creator, stoops to become a servant to his own creatures, can youconceive the majestic condescension which bows itself in mercy over the miserable heart,and with loving finger closes the gaping wounds of the spirit. Oh, sin-sick sinner! the Kingof heaven will not despise thee, but thou too shalt find him thy Comforter, who healeth allthy diseases. Mark, moreover, how tenderly he does it. You remember that passage in thePsalms: "Loving kindness and tender mercies." God's mercies are "tender mercies;" whenhe undertakes to bind up the broken in heart, he always uses the softest liniment. He is notlike your army surgeon, who hurries along and says "A leg off here, an arm off there;" but

he comes gently and sympathizingly. He does not use roughness with us; but with downyfingers he putteth the wound together, and layeth the plaster on; yea, he doth it in such asoft and winning way, that we are full of wonder to think he could be so kind to suchunworthy ones.Then he does it securely, so that the wound can not open again. If he puts on his plaster, itis heaven's court-plaster, and it never fails. If he heals, he heals effectually. o man who isonce saved of God shall ever be lost. If we receive mercy by faith, we shall never lose it.When God heals once, he heals forever. Although some who teach false doctrine do assertthat children of God may be lost, they have no warrant in Scripture, nor in experience, forwe know that he keepeth the saints. He who is once forgiven, can not be punished. He whois once regenerated, can not perish. He who is once healed, shall never find his soul sickunto death. Blessings on his name, some of us have felt his skill, and known his mightypower; and were our hearts broken now, we would not stop a moment, but go at once to hisfeet, and we would cry, "O thou that bindest the broken in heart, bind ours; thou thathealest wounds, heal ours, we beseech thee."And now, my hearers and readers, a parting word with you. Are you careless and ungodly?Permit your friend to speak with you. Is it true that after death there is a judgment? Doyou believe that when you die, you will be called to stand before the bar of God? Do youknow that there is a hell of eternal flame appointed for the wicked? Yes—you know andbelieve all this—and yet you are going down to hell thoughtless and unconcerned—you areliving in constant and fearful jeopardy of your lives—without a friend on the other side thegrave. Ah, how changed will your note be soon! You have turned away from rebuke, youhave laughed at warning, but laughter will then give place to sighs, and your singing toyells of agony. Bethink thee, oh my brother man, ere thou dost again peril thy life. Whatwilt thou do if thy soul is required of thee? Canst thou endure the terrors of the Almighty?Canst thou dwell in everlasting burnings? Were thy bones of iron, and thy ribs of brass, thesight of the coming judgment would make thee tremble; forbear then to mock at religion,cease to blaspheme you Maker, for remember, you will soon meet him face to face, and howwill you then account for your insults heaped upon his patient person? May the Lord yethumble thee before him.But I am seeking the distressed one, and I am impatient to be the means of his comfort. Itmay be my words are now sounding in the ear of my weary wounded fellow-countrymen.You have been long time tossing on the bed of languishing, and the time for thought hadbeen blessed to your soul by God. You are now feeling the guilt of your life, and arelamenting the sins of your conduct. You fear there is no hope of pardon, no prospect offorgiveness, and you tremble lest death should lead your guilty soul unforgiven before itsMaker. Hear, then, the word of God. Thy pains for sins are God's work in thy soul. Hewoundeth thee that thou mayest seek him. He would not have showed thee thy sin if he didnot intend to pardon. Thou art now a sinner, and Jesus came to save sinners, therefore hecame to save thee; yea, he is saving thee now. These strivings of soul are the work of hismercy; there is love in every blow, and grace in every stripe. Believe, O troubled one, thathe is able to save thee unto the uttermost, and thou shalt not believe in vain. ow, in thesilence of your agony, look unto him who by his stripes healeth thee. Jesus Christ hassuffered the penalty of thy sins, and has endured the wrath of God on thy behalf. See you,yonder crucified Man on Calvary, and mark thee that those drops of blood are falling forthee, those nailed hands are pierced for thee, and that opened side contains a heart within

it, full of love to thee.

" one but Jesus! none but JesusCan do helpless sinners good!"

It is simple reliance on him which saves. The negro said, "Massa, I fall flat on de promise;"so if you fall flat on the promise of Jesus, you shall not find him fail you; he will bind upyour heart, and make an end to the days of your mourning. We shall meet in heaven oneday, to sing hallelujah to the condescending Lord; till then, may the God of all grace be ourhelper. Amen.

"The mighty God will not despiseThe contrite heart for sacrifice;The deep-fetched sigh, the secret groan,Rises accepted to the throne.

He meets, with tokens of his grace,The trembling lip, the blushing face;His bowels yearn when sinners pray;And mercy bears their sins away.

When filled with grief, o'erwhelmed with shame;He, pitying, heals their broken frame;He hears their sad complaints, and spiesHis image in their weeping eyes."

10. Spurgeon goes on with another message on this verse:

"He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds."—Psalm147:3.

Often as we have read this Psalm, we can never fail to be struck with the connection inwhich this verse stands, especially its connection with the verse that follows. Read the twotogether: "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth thenumber of the stars; he calleth them all by their names." What condescension andgrandeur! What pity and omnipotence! He who leads out yonder ponderous orbs in almostimmeasurable orbits, nevertheless, is the Surgeon of men's souls, and stoops over brokenhearts, and with his own tender fingers closes up the gaping wound, and binds it with theliniment of love. Think of it; and if I should not speak as well as I could desire upon thewonderful theme of his condescension, yet help me by your own thoughts to do reverence tothe Maker of the stars, who is, at the same time, the Physician for broken hearts andwounded spirits.I am equally interested in the connection of my text with the verse that goes before it: "TheLord doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel." The church ofGod is never so well built up as when it is built up with men of broken hearts. I haveprayed to God in secret many a time, of late, that he would be pleased to gather out from

among us a people who have a deep experience, who should know the guilt of sin, whoshould be broken and ground to powder under a sense of their own inability andunworthiness; for I am persuaded that, without a deep experience of sin, there is seldommuch belief in the doctrine of grace, and not much enthusiasm in praising the Saviour'sname. The church needs to be built up with men who have been pulled down. Unless weknow in our hearts our need of a Saviour, we shall never be worth much in preaching him.That preacher who has never been converted, what can he say about it? And he who hasnever been in the dungeon, who has never been in the abyss, who has never felt as if hewere cast out from the sight of God, how can he comfort many who are outcasts, and whoare bound with the fetters of despair? May the Lord break many hearts, and then bindthem up, that with them he may build up the church, and inhabit it!But now, leaving the connection, I come to the text itself, and I desire to speak of it so thateveryone here who is troubled may derive comfort from it, God the Holy Ghost speakingthrough it. Consider, first, the patients and their sickness: "He healed the broken in heart."Then, consider, the Physician and his medicine, and for a while turn your eyes to him whodoes this healing work. Then, I shall want you to consider, the testimonial to the great

Physician which we have in this verse: "He healed the broken in heart, and bindeth uptheir wounds." Lastly, and most practically, we will consider, what we ought to do towardshim who healeth the broken in heart.I. First, then, consider THE PATIE TS A D THEIR SICK ESS. They are broken inheart. I have heard of many who have died of a broken heart; but there are some who livewith a broken heart, and who live all the better for having had their hearts broken; theylive another and higher life than they lived before that blessed stroke broke their hearts inpieces.There are many sorts of broken hearts, and Christ is good at healing them all. I am notgoing to lower and narrow the application of my text. The patients of the great Physicianare those whose hearts are broken through sorrow. Hearts are broken throughdisappointment. Hearts are broken through bereavement. Hearts are broken in tenthousand ways, for this is a heart-breaking world; and Christ is good at healing all mannerof heart-breaks. I would encourage every person here, even though his heart-break maynot be of a spiritual kind, to make an application to him who healed the broken in heart.The text does not say, "the spiritually broken in heart", therefore I will not insert anadverb where there is none in the passage. Come hither, ye that are burdened, all ye thatlabour and are heavy laden; come hither, all ye that sorrow, be your sorrow what it may;come hither, all ye whose hearts are broken, be the heart-break what it may, for he healeththe broken in heart.Still, there is a special brokenness of heart to which Christ gives the very earliest andtenderest attention. He heals those whose hearts are broken for sin. Christ heals the heartthat is broken because of its sin; so that it grieves, laments, regrets, and bemoans itself,saying, "Woe is me that I have done this exceeding great evil, and brought ruin uponmyself! Woe is me that I have dishonoured God, that I have cast myself away from hispresence, that I have made myself liable to his everlasting wrath, and that even now hiswrath abideth upon me!" If there is a man here whose heart is broken about his past life,he is the man to whom my text refers. Are you heart-broken because you have wastedforty, fifty, sixty years? Are you heart-broken at the remembrance that you have cursedthe God who has blessed you, that you have denied the existence of him without whom you

never would have been in existence yourself, that you have lived to train your familywithout godliness, without any respect to the Most High God at all? Has the Lord broughtthis home to you? Has he made you feel what a hideous thing it is to be blind to Christ, torefuse his love, to reject his blood, to live an enemy to your best Friend? Have you felt this?O my friend, I cannot reach across the gallery to give you my hand; but will you think thatI am doing it, for I wish to do it? If there is a heart here broken on account of sin, I thankGod for it, and praise the Lord that there is such a text as this: "He healeth the broken inheart"Christ also heals hearts that are broken from sin. When you and sin have quarrelled, neverlet the quarrel be made up again. You and sin were friends at one time; but now you hatesin, and you would be wholly rid of it if you could. You wish never to sin. You are anxiousto be clear of the most darling sin that you ever indulged in, and you desire to be made aspure as God is pure. Your heart is broken away from its old moorings. That which youonce loved you now hate. That which you once hated you now at least desire to love. It iswell. I am glad that you are here, for to you is the text sent, "He healeth the broken inheart."If there is a broken-hearted person anywhere about, many people despise him. "Oh," theysay, "he is melancholy, he is mad, he is out of his mind through religion!" Yes, men despisethe broken in heart, but such, O God, thou wilt not despise! The Lord looks after such, andheals them.Those who do not despise them, at any rate avoid them. I know some few friends who havelong been of a broken heart; and when I feel rather dull, I must confess that I do notalways go their way, for they are apt to make me feel more depressed. Yet would I not getout of their way if I felt that I could help them. Still, it is the nature of men to seek thecheerful and the happy, and to avoid the broken-hearted. God does not do so; he heals thebroken in heart. He goes where they are, and he reveals himself to them as the Comforterand the Healer.In a great many cases people despair of the broken-hearted ones. "It is no use," says one,"I have tried to comfort her, but I cannot do it." "I have wasted a great many words," saysanother, "on such and such a friend, and I cannot help him. I despair of his ever getting outof the dark." ot so is it with God; he healeth the broken in heart. He despairs of none. Heshows the greatness of his power, and the wonders of his wisdom, by fetching men andwomen out of the lowest dungeon, wherein despair has shut them.As for the broken-hearted ones themselves, they do not think that they ever can beconverted. Some of them are sure that they never can; they wish that they were dead,though I do not see what they would gain by that. Others of them wish that they had neverbeen born, though that is a useless wish now. Some are ready to rush after any new thing totry to find a little comfort; while others, getting worse and worse, are sitting down in sullendespair. I wish that I knew who these were; I should like to come round, and just say tothem, "Come, brother; there must be no doubting and no despair to-night, for my text isgloriously complete, and is meant for you. "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth uptheir wounds." otice that fifth verse, "Great is our Lord, and of great power; hisunderstanding is infinite." Consequently, he can heal the broken in heart. God is gloriousat a dead lift. When a soul cannot stir, or help itself, God delights to come in with hisomnipotence, and lift the great load, and set the burdened one free.It takes great wisdom to comfort a broken heart. If any of you have ever tried it, I am sure

you have not found it an easy task. I have given much of my life to this work; and I alwayscome away from a desponding one with a consciousness of my own inability to comfort theheart-broken and cast-down. Only God can do it. Blessed be his name that he has arrangedthat one Person of the Sacred Trinity should undertake this office of Comforter; for noman could ever perform its duties. We might as well hope to be the Saviour as to be theComforter of the heart-broken. Efficiently and completely to save or to comfort must be awork divine. That is why the Holy Divine Spirit, healeth the broken in heart, and bindethup their wounds with infinite power and unfailing skill.

II. ow, secondly, we are going to consider THE PHYSICIA A D HIS MEDICI E: "Hehealeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." Who is this that healeth thebroken in heart?I answer that Jesus was anointed of God for this work. He said, "The Spirit of the Lord isupon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me toheal the broken-hearted." Was the Holy Spirit given to Christ in vain? That cannot be. Hewas given for a purpose which must be answered, and that purpose is the healing of thebroken-hearted. By the very anointing of Christ by the Holy Spirit, you may be sure thatour Physician will heal the broken in heart.Further, Jesus was sent of God on purpose to do his work; "He hath sent me to heal thebroken-hearted." If Christ does not heal the broken-hearted, he will not fulfill the missionfor which he came from heaven. If the broken-hearted are not cheered by his glorious lifeand the blessings that flow out of his death, then he will have come to earth for nothing.This is the very errand on which the Lord of glory left the bosom of the Father to be veiledin human clay, that he might heal the broken in heart; and he will do it.Our Lord was also educated for this work. He was not only anointed and sent; but he wastrained for it. "How?" say you. Why, he had a broken heart himself; and there is noeducation for the office of comforter like being place where you yourself have need ofcomfort, so that you may be able to comfort others with the comfort wherewith youyourself have been comforted of God. Is your heart broken? Christ's heart was broken. Hesaid, "Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness." He went as low as youhave ever been, and deeper than you can ever go. "My God, my God, why hast thouforsaken me?" was his bitter cry. If that be your agonized utterance, he can interpret it byhis own suffering. He can measure your grief by his grief. Broken hearts, there is nohealing for you except through him who had a broken heart himself. Ye disconsolate, cometo him! He can make your heart happy and joyous, by the very fact of his own sorrow, andthe brokenness of his own heart. "In all our afflictions he was afflicted." He was tempted inall points like as we are", "a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief." For a brokenheart, there is no physician like him.Once more, I can strongly recommend my Lord Jesus Christ as the Healer of brokenhearts, because he is so experienced in the work. Some people are afraid that the doctor willtry experiments upon them; but our Physician will only do for us what he has done manytimes before. It is no matter of experiment with him; it is a matter of experience. If youknock to-night at my great Doctor's door, you will, perhaps say to him, "Here is thestrangest patient, my Lord, that ever came to thee." He will smile as he looks at you, and hewill think, "I have saved hundreds like you." Here comes one who says, "That first man'scase was nothing compared with mine; I am about the worst sinner who ever lived." And

the Lord Jesus Christ will say, "Yes, I saved the worst man that ever lived long ago, and Ikeep on saving such as he. I delight to do it." But here comes one who has a curious oddway of broken-heartedness. He is an out-of-the-way fretter. Yes, but my Lord is able to"have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way." He can lay holdof this out-of-the-way one; for he has always been saving out-of-the-way sinners. My Lordhas been healing broken hearts well nigh nineteen hundred years. Can you find a brass-plate anywhere in London telling of a physician of that age? He has been at the worklonger than that; for it is not far off six thousand years since he went into this business, andhe has been healing the broken in heart ever since that time.I will tell you one thing about him that I have on good authority, that is, he never lost a caseyet. There never was one who came to him with a broken heart, but he healed him. Henever said to one, "You are too bad for me to heal;" but he did say, "Him that cometh tome, I will in now wise cast out." My dear hearer, he will not cast you out. You say, "You donot know me, Mr. Spurgeon." o, I do not; and you have come here to-night, and youhardly know why you are here; only you are very low and very sad. The Lord Jesus Christloves such as you are, you poor, desponding, doubting, desolate, disconsolate one.Daughters of sorrow, sons of grief, look ye here! Jesus Christ has gone on healing brokenhearts for thousands of years, and he is well up in the business. He understands it byexperience, as well as by education. He is "mighty to save." Consider him; consider him;and the Lord grant you grace to come and trust him even now!Thus I have talked to you about the Physician for broken hearts; shall I tell you what hischief medicine is? It is his own flesh and blood. There is no cure like it. When a sinner isbleeding with sin, Jesus pours his own blood into the wound; and when that wound is slowin healing, he binds his own sacrifice about it. Healing for broken hearts comes by theatonement, atonement by substitution, Christ suffering in our stead. He suffered for everyone who believeth in him, and he that believeth in him is not condemned, and never can becondemned, for the condemnation due to him was laid upon Christ. He is clear before thebar of justice as well as before the throne of mercy. I remember when the Lord put thatprecious ointment upon my wounded spirit. othing ever healed me until I understood thathe died in my place and stead, died that I might not die; and now, to-day, my heart wouldbleed itself to death were it not that I believe that he "his own self bare our sins in his ownbody on the tree." "With his stripes we are healed," and with no medicine but this atoningsacrifice. A wonderful heal-all is this, when the Holy Ghost applies it with his own divinepower, and lets life and love come streaming into the heart that was ready to bleed todeath.

III. My time flies too quickly; so, thirdly, I want you to consider THE TESTIMO IAL TOTHE GREAT PHYSICIA which is emblazoned in my text. It is God the Holy Ghost who,by the mouth of his servant David, bears testimony to this congregation to-night that theLord Jesus heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds. If I said it, you need nomore believe it than I need believe it if you said it. One man's word is as good as another'sif we be truthful men; but this statement is found in an inspired Psalm. I believe it; I darenot doubt it, for I have proven its truth.I understand my text to mean this: he does it effectually. As I said last Thursday night, ifthere is a person cast down or desponding within twenty miles, he is pretty sure to find meout. I laugh sometimes, and say, "Birds of a feather flock together;" but they come to talk

to me about their despondency, and sometimes they leave me half desponding in theattempt to get them out of their sadness. I have had some very sad cases just lately, and Iam afraid that, when they went out of my room, they could not say of me, "He healeth thebroken in heart." I am sure that they could say, "He tried his best. He brought out all thechoicest arguments he could think of to comfort me." And they have felt very grateful.They have come back sometimes to thank God that they have been a little bit encouraged;but some of them are frequent visitors; and I have been trying to cheer them up by themonth together. But, when my Master undertakes the work, "He healeth the broken inheart," he not only tries to do it, he does it. He touches the secret sources of the sorrow, andtakes the spring of the grief away. We try our bests; but we cannot do it. You know it isvery hard to deal with the heart. The human heart needs more than human skill to cure it.When a person dies, and the doctors do not know the complaint of which he died, they say,"It was heart disease." They did not understand his malady; that is what that means.There is only one Physician who can heal the heart; but, glory be to his blessed name, "Hehealeth the broken in heart," he does it effectually.As I read my text, I understand it to mean, he does it constantly. "He healeth the broken inheart." ot merely, "He did heal them years ago"; but he is doing it now. "He healeth thebroken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." What, at this minute? Ten minutes toeight? Yes, he is doing this work now. "He healeth the broken in heart," and when theservice is over, and the congregation is gone, what will Jesus be doing then? Oh, he will stillbe healing the broken in heart! Suppose this year 1890 should run out, and the Lord doesnot come to judgment, what will he be doing then? He will still be healing the broken inheart. He has not used up his ointments. He has not exhausted his patience. He has not inthe least degree diminished his power. He still healeth. "Oh dear!" said one, "If I had cometo Christ a year ago, it would have been well with me." If you come to Christ to-night, itwill be well with you, for "he healeth the broken in heart." I do not know who was theinventor of that idea of "sinning away the day of grace." If you are willing to have Christ,you may have him. If you are as old as Methuselah—and I do not suppose that you areolder than he was—if you want Christ, you may have him. As long as you are out of hell,Christ is able to save you. He is going on with his old work. Because you are just past fifty,you say the die is cast; because you are past eighty, you say, "I am too old to be savednow." onsense! He healeth, he healeth, he is still doing it, "he healeth the broken inheart."I go further than that, and say that he does it invariably. I have shown you that he does iteffectually and constantly; but he does it invariably. There never was a broken heartbrought to him that he did not heal. Do not some broken-hearted patients go out at theback door, as my Master's failures? o, not one. There never was one yet that he could notheal. Doctors are obliged, sometimes, in our hospitals to give up some persons, and say thatthey will never recover. Certain symptoms have proved that they are incurable. But,despairing one, in the divine hospital, of which Christ is the Physician, there never was apatient of his who was turned out as incurable. He is able to save to the uttermost. Do youknow how far that is—"to the uttermost"? There is no going beyond "the uttermost",because the uttermost goes beyond everything else, to make it the uttermost. "He is able tosave them to the uttermost that come unto God by him." Where are you, friend"Uttermost"? Are you here to-night? "Ah!" you say, "I wonder that I am not in hell."Well, so do I; but you are not, and you never will be, if you cast yourself on Christ. Rest in

the full atonement that he has made; for he healeth always, without any failure, "he healeththe broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds."As I read these words, it seems to me that he glories in doing it. He said to the Psalmist, bythe Holy Spirit, "Write a Psalm in which you shall begin with Hallelujah, and finish withHallelujah, and set in the middle of the Psalm this as one of the things for which I delight tobe praised, that I heal the broken in heart." one of the gods of the heathen were everpraised for this. Did you ever read a song to Jupiter, or to Mercury, or to Venus, or to anyof them, in which they were praised for binding up the broken in heart? Jehovah, the Godof Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord andSaviour Jesus Christ, is the only God who makes it his boast that he binds up the broken inheart. Come, you big, black sinner; come, you desperado; come, you that have gone beyondall measurement in sin; you can glorify God more than anybody else by believing that hecan save even you! He can save you, and put you among the children. He delights to savethose that seemed farthest from him.IV. This is my last point: consider WHAT WE OUGHT TO DO.If there is such a Physician as this, and we have broken hearts, it goes without saying that,first of all, we ought to resort to him. When people are told that they have an incurabledisease, a malady that will soon bring them to their grave, they are much distressed; but if,somewhere or other, they hear that the disease may be cured after all, they say, "Where?Where?" Well, perhaps it is thousands of miles away; but they are willing to go if they can.Or the medicine may be very unpleasant or very expensive; but if they find that they can becured, they say, "I will have it." If anyone came to their door, and said, "Here it is, it willheal you; and you can have it for nothing, and as much as you ever want of it;" there wouldbe no difficulty in getting rid of any quantity of the medicine, so long as we found peoplesick. ow, if you have a broken heart to-night, you will be glad to have Christ. I had abroken heart once, and I went to him and he healed it in a moment, and made me sing forjoy! Young men and women, I was about fifteen or sixteen when he healed me. I wish thatyou would go to him now, while you are yet young. The age of his patients does not matter.Are you younger than fifteen? Boys and girls may have broken hearts; and old men andold women may have broken hearts; but they may come to Jesus and be healed. Let themcome to him to-night, and seek to be healed.When you are about to go to Christ, possibly you ask, "How shall I go to him?" Go byprayer. One said to me, the other day, "I wish that you would write me a prayer, sir." Isaid, " o, I cannot do that, go and tell the Lord what you want." He replied, "Sometimes Ifeel such a great want that I do not know what it is I do want, and I try to pray, but Icannot. I wish that somebody would tell me what to say." "Why!" I said, "the Lord hastold you what to say. This is what he has said: 'Take with you words, and turn to the Lord:say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously.' " Go to Christ in prayerwith such words as those, or any others that you can get. If you cannot get any words, tearsare just as good, and rather better; and groans and sighs and secret desires will beacceptable with God.But add faith to them. Trust the Physician. You know that no ointment will heal you if youdo not put it on the wound. Oftentimes when there is a wound, you want something withwhich to strap the ointment on. Faith straps on the heavenly heal-all. Go to the Lord withyour broken heart, and believe that he can heal you. Believe that he alone can heal you;trust him to do it. Fall at his feet, and say, "If I perish, I will perish here. I believe that the

Son of God can save me, and I will be saved by him; but I will never look anywhere else forsalvation. 'Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief!'" If you have come as far as that, youare very near the light; the great Physician will heal your broken heart before very long.Trust him to do it now.When you have trusted in him, and your heart is healed, and you are happy, tell others

about him. I do not like my Lord to have any tongue-tied children. I do not mean that Iwould want you all to preach. When a whole church takes to preaching, it is as if the wholebody were a mouth, and that would be a vacuum. I want you to tell others, in some way orother, what the Lord has done for you; and be earnest in endeavouring to bring others tothe great Physician. You all recollect, therefore I need not tell you again, the story that wehad about the doctor at one of our hospitals, a year or two ago. He healed a dog's brokenleg, and the grateful animal brought other dogs to have their broken legs healed. That wasa good dog; some of you are not half as good as that dog. You believe that Christ is blessingyou, yet you never try to bring others to him to be saved. That must not be the case anylonger. We must excel that dog in our love for our species; and it must be our intense desirethat, if Christ has healed us, he should heal our wife, our child, our friend, our neighbour;and we should never rest till others are brought to him. Then, when others are brought toChrist, or even if they will not be brought to him, be sure to praise him. If your brokenheart has been healed, and you are saved, and your sins forgiven, praise him. We do notsing half enough. I do not mean in our congregations; but when we are at home. We prayevery day. Do we sing every day? I think that we should. Matthew Henry used to say, aboutfamily prayer, "They that pray do well; they that read and pray do better; they that readand pray and sing do best of all." I think that Matthew Henry was right. "Well, I have novoice," says one. Have you not? Then you never grumble at your wife; your never find faultwith your food; you are not one of those who make the household unhappy by your evilspeeches. "Oh, I do not mean that!" o, I thought you did not mean that. Well, praise theLord with the same voice that you have used for complaining. "But I could not lend atune," says one. obody said you were to do so. You can at least sing as I do. My singing isof a very peculiar character. I find that I cannot confine myself to one tune; in the course ofa verse I use half-a-dozen tunes; but the Lord, to whom I sing, never finds any fault withme. He never blames me, because I do not keep this tune or that. I cannot help it. My voiceruns away with me, and my heart too; but I keep on humming something or other by wayof praising God's name. I would like you to do the same. I used to know an old Methodist;and the first thing in the morning, when he got up, he began singing a bit of a Methodisthymn; and if I met the old man during the day, he was always singing. I have seen him inhis little workshop, with his lapstone on his knee, and he was always singing, and beatingwith his hammer. When I said to him once, "Why do you always sing, dear brother?" hereplied, "Because I always have something to sing about." That is a good reason forsinging. If our broken hearts have been healed, we have something to sing about in timeand throughout eternity. Let us begin to do so to the praise of the glory of his grace, who"healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." God bless all the brokenhearts that are in this congregation to-night, for Jesus' sake! Amen.

Psalm 147

This is one of the Hallelujah Psalms; it begins and ends with "Praise ye the LORD." Mayour hearts be in tune, that we may praise the Lord while we read these words of praise!Verse 1. Praise ye the LORD:

It is not enough for the Psalmist to do it himself. He wants help in it, so he says, "Praise ye

the LORD." Wake up, my brethren; bestir yourselves, my sisters; come, all of you, andunite in this holy exercise! "Praise ye the LORD."1. For it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.

When a thing is good, pleasant, and comely, you have certainly three excellent reasons forattending to it. It is not everything that is good; but here you have a happy combination ofgoodness, pleasantness, and comliness. It will do you good to praise God. God counts itgood, and you will find it a pleasant exercise. That which is the occupation of heaven mustbe happy employment. "It is good to sing praises unto our God," "it is pleasant," andcertainly nothing is more "comely" and beautiful, and more in accordance with the rightorder of things, than for creatures to praise their Creator, and the children of God topraise their Father in heaven.2. The LORD doth build up Jerusalem:

Praise his name for that. You love his church; be glad that he builds it up. Praise him whoquarries every stone, and puts it upon the one foundation that is laid, even Jesus.2. He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.

Praise him for that. If you were once an outcast, and he has gathered you, give him yourspecial personal song of thanksgiving.3. He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

Praise him for that, ye who have had broken hearts! If he has healed you, surely you shouldgive him great praise.4. He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.

He who heals broken hearts counts the stars, and calls them by their names, as men calltheir servants, and send them on their way. Praise his name. Can you look up at the starrysky at night without praising him who made the stars, and leads out their host?5. Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.

Praise him, then; praise his greatness, his almightiness, his infinite wisdom. Can you dootherwise? Oh, may God reveal himself so much to your heart that you shall beconstrained to pay him willing adoration!6. The LORD lifteth up the meek:

What a lifting up it is for them, out of the very dust where they have been trodden down bythe proud and the powerful! The Lord lifts them up. Praise him for that.6. He casteth the wicked down to the ground.

Thus he puts an end to their tyranny, and delivers those who were ground beneath theircruel power. Praise ye his name for this also. Excuse me that I continue to say to you,"Praise ye the Lord," for, often as I say it, you will not praise him too much; and we needto have our hearts stirred up to this duty of praising God, which is so much neglected.After all, it is the praise of God that is the ultimatum of our religion. Prayer does but sow;praise is the harvest. Praying is the end of preaching, and praising is the end of praying.May we bring to God much of the very essence of true religion, and that will be the inwardpraise of the heart!7. Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God:

"Unto our God." How that possessive pronoun puts a world of endearment into the

majestic word "God"! "This God is our God." Come, my hearer, can you call God yourGod? Is he indeed yours? If so, "Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise uponthe harp unto our God."8. Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass

to grow upon the mountains.

They did not talk about the "law of nature" in those days. They ascribed everything toGod; let us do the same. It is a poor science that pushes God farther away from us, insteadof bringing him nearer to us. HE covers the heaven with clouds, HE prepares the rain forearth, HE makes the grass to grow upon the mountains.9. He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.

Our God cares for the birds and the beasts. He is as great in little things as in great things.Praise ye his name. The gods of the heathen could not have these things said of them; butour God takes pleasure in providing for the beasts of field and the birds of the air. Thecommissariat of the universe is in his hand: "Thou openest thine hand, and satisfieth thedesire of every living thing."10, 11. He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a

man. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.—

Kings of the olden times rejoiced in the thews and sinews of their soldiers and their horses;but God has no delight in mere physical strength. He takes pleasure in spiritual things,even in the weakness which makes us fear him, even that weakness which has not growninto the strength of faith, and yet hopes in his mercy. "The Lord taketh pleasure in themthat fear him, in those that hope in his mercy."12. Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion.

Let whole cities join together to praise God. Shall we live to see the day when all Londonshall praise him? Shall we, ever, as we go down these streets, with their multitudes ofinhabitants, see the people standing in the doorways, and asking, "What must we do to besaved?" Shall we ever see every house with anxious enquirers in it, saying, "Tell us, tell us,how can we be reconciled to God?" Pray that it may be so. In Cromwell's day, if your wentdown Cheapside at a certain hour of the morning, you would find every blind drawn down;for the inmates were all at family prayer. There is no street like that in London now. Inthose glorious Puritan times, there was domestic worship everywhere, and the peopleseemed brought to Christ's feet. Alas, it was but an appearance in many cases; and theysoon turned back to their own devices! Imitating the Psalmist, let us say, "Praise the Lord,O London; praise thy God, O England!"13. For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates; he hath blessed thy children within thee.

As a nation, we have been greatly prospered, defended, and supplied; and the church ofGod has been made to stand fast against her enemies, and her children have been blessed.14, 15. He maketh peace in thy borders, and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat. He

sendeth forth his commandment upon earth: his word runneth very swiftly.

Oriental monarchs were very earnest to have good post arrangements. They sent theirdecrees upon swift dromedaries. They can never be compared with the swiftness of thepurpose of God's decree. "His word runneth very swiftly." Oh, that the day would comewhen, over all the earth, God's writ should run, and God's written Word should come to bereverenced, believed, and obeyed!16. He giveth snow like wool:

Men say, "it" snows; but what "it" is it that snows? The Psalmist rightly says of the Lord,

"HE giveth snow." They say that according to the condition of the atmosphere, snow isproduced; but the believer says, "He giveth snow like wool." It is not only like wool forwhiteness; but it is like it for the warmth which it gives.16. He scattereth the hoar frost like ashes.

The simile is not to be easily explained; but it will often have suggested itself to you who, inthe early morning, have seen the hoar frost scattered abroad.17. He casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold?

one can stand before his heat; but when he withdraws the fire, and takes away the heat,the cold is equally destructive. It burns up as fast as fire would. "Who can stand before hiscold?" If God be gone, if the Spirit of God be taken away from his church, or from any ofyou, who can stand before his cold? The deprivation is as terrible as if it were a positiveinfliction. "Who can stand before his cold?"18. He sendeth out his word, and melteth them; he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters

flow.

The frozen waters were hard as iron; the south wind toucheth them, and they flow again.What can God not do? The great God of nature is our God. Let us praise him. Oh, may ourhearts be in a right key to-night to make music before him!19. He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes unto Israel.

This is something greater than all his wonders in nature. The God of nature is the God ofrevelation. He hath not hidden his truth away from men. He hath come out of the eternalsecrecies, and he hath showed his word, especially his Incarnate Word, unto his people. Lethis name be praised.20. He hath not dealt so with any nation:

Or, with any other nation. He revealed his statutes and his judgments to Israel; and sincetheir day, the spiritual Israel has been privileged in like manner: "He hath not dealt sowith any nation."20. And as for his judgments, they have not known them.

Even to-day there are large tracts of country where God is not known. If we know him, letus praise him.20. Praise ye the LORD.

Hallelujah! The Psalm ends upon its key-note: "Praise ye the LORD." So may all our livesend! Amen.

4. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.

1. Barnes, “telleth the number of the stars - counts them all. God only can do this. The starsare so numerous that no astronomer can count them; they lie so far in the depths of space,and are so remote from each other, that no man can be so presumptuous as to suppose thathe has even seen any considerable part of them, even by the aid of the most powerfultelescopes.

He calleth them all by their names - As if each one had a name, and God could call them

forth one by one by their names, like the muster-roll of an army. This language seems to betaken from Isa_40:26: “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created thesethings, that bringeth out their host by numbers; he calleth them all by names, by thegreatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.” See the notes at thatpassage.

1B. Warren Wiersbe, “The God of the galaxies is also the God of the brokenhearted. That'swhat David tells us in verses 3 and 4: "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up theirwounds. He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name."The contrast we see in these two verses--between the heavens and the broken heart--oughtto encourage us. God made the heavens. He spoke and it was done. His creation stoodsteadfast. The God who made the heavens is concerned about your broken heart. Othersmay not be concerned, but God is. He's not so far away that He doesn't know your heart ishurting. He's not so great that He can't stoop down to you when you are pained, weepingand looking for help.

Yes, the God of the heavens is the God of your heart. The God who numbers and names thestars knows your needs. He knows all about you, and thus He is able to meet your everyneed. The God who controls the planets in their orbits is able to take the pieces of yourbroken heart and put them together again. He will heal your broken heart, provided yougive Him all the pieces and yield to His tender love.

"Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite" (v. 5). His love andunderstanding are limitless. His power is great. He can do what needs to be done.

* * *

The One who set the galaxies in motion is the same One who addresses your needs. There isno limit to God's love, His understanding or His power. Perhaps you have a broken hearttoday. Give Him the pieces and let Him heal your heart.

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2. Clarke, “telleth the number of the stars - whose knowledge is so exact as to tell every starin heaven, can be under no difficulty to find out and collect all the scattered exiles of Israel.

3. Gill, “telleth the number of the stars,.... Which no man can do exactly; see Gen_15:5; theancient astronomers pretended to tell them, as Aratus and Eudoxus (o), and fixed theirnumber at a thousand and some odd; but then these were only such as were of somemagnitude and influence, and such as commonly appeared; but since the use of telescopesmany are seen which were not before; and especially those clusters of them in the MilkyWay cannot be distinctly discerned and told; but the Lord that made them can tell their

exact number. Aben Ezra thinks this is said with respect to the outcasts of Israel scatteredthroughout the whole earth, as the stars are in the upper orb; and that as the Lord knowsthe one, he knows the other; which is not amiss, especially spiritually understood;

he calleth them all by theirnames; not that he calls one Jupiter and another Verus, &c. asthe Heathens have done; but the sense is, that he has as perfect, distinct, and exactknowledge of them, as we have of any persons or things that we can call by name, and moreso; see Isa_40:26. This may be applied to the saints, who are like to stars for the light theyreceive from Christ the sun of righteousness, and are a number which no man can number;Christ knows them all distinctly and exactly, and can call them by name, and holds them inhis right hand, and will preserve them; and they shall shine for ever like stars, yea, like thesun in the kingdom of his Father; so Arama interprets this of the righteous, who arecompared to stars; see Dan_12:4.

4. Henry, “sovereign dominion he has over the lights of heaven, Psa_147:4, Psa_147:5. Thestars are innumerable, many of them being scarcely discernible with the naked eye, and yethe counts them, and knows the exact number of them, for they are all the work of his handsand the instruments of his providence. Their bulk and power are very great; but he calleth

them all by their names,which shows his dominion over them and the command he has themat, to make what use of them he pleases. They are his servants, his soldiers; he mustersthem, he marshals them; they come and go at his bidding, and all their motions are underhis direction. He mentions this as one instance of many, to show that great is our Lord and

of great power(he can do what he pleases), and of his understanding there is no

computation,so that he can contrive every thing for the best. Man's knowledge is soondrained, and you have his utmost length; hitherto his wisdom can reach and no further.But God's knowledge is a depth that can never be fathomed.

5. Jamison, “’s power in nature (Isa_40:26-28, and often) is presented as a pledge of Hispower to help His people.

telleth ... stars — what no man can do (Gen_15:5).

6. They are like his family, and he knows them all by name. If God has such a memory todo this, then we know he knows every person by name, for they are more important to himthan the stars, for they are eternal. God loves all his creation. What a jump from man’sheart to the whole universe in one step, for God is everywhere present, and there is no hintin the Bible of a God who is too small. There is a leap from hearts to heavens because Godis infinite. If God knows the name of every star then God is confirming that Einstein isright and the universe is finite. Infinite is an attribute of God alone. There is a finitenumber of stars. Man does count the stars, but he is constantly revising his count, for hediscovers a few billion more every time he points his telescope to a different part of theheavens. Does a billionaire have any interest in pennies, and does an astronomer wholabors among the stars have any interest in the grass in his backyard? Yes, men can gofrom great extremes in their interest, and so can God. You can actually get a star namedafter you, and some feel that God does name the stars for each saint.

7. Do you know how many starsThere are shining in the sky?Do you know how many cloudsEvery day go floating by?God, the Lord, their number knoweth,For each one His care He showeth,Of the bright and boundless host,Of the bright and boundless host.

Do you know how many birdiesIn the sunshine sing each day?Do you know how many fishesIn the sparkling water play?God, the Lord, Who dwells in Heaven, ame and life to each has given,In His love they live and move,In His love they live and move.

Do you know how many childrenGo to little beds at night,And without a care or sorrowWake again with morning light?God in Heav’n each name can tell,Know us, too, and loves us well,He’s our best and dearest Friend,He’s our best and dearest Friend.

Author unknown

8. Spurgeon, “From worlds to wounds is a distance which only infinite compassion canbridge. Yet he who acts a surgeon's part with wounded hearts, marshals the heavenly host,and reads the muster roll of suns and their majestic systems. O Lord, it is good to praisethee as ruling the stars, but it is pleasant to adore thee as healing the broken in heart!

9. Treasury of David, “Verse 4. He telleth the number of the stars, etc. Among the heathenevery constellation represented some god. But the Scriptures show Jehovah, not as one ofmany starry gods, but as the one God of all the stars. He is, too, as he taught his people byAbraham, the God of a firmament of nobler stars. His people are scattered and trodden asthe sands of the sea-shore. But he turns dust and dirt to stars of glory. He will make ofevery saint a star, and Heaven is his people's sky, where broken hearted sufferers of earthare glorified into glittering galaxies.—Hermann Venema.

Verse 4. He calleth them all by their names. Literally, "calleth names to all of them", anexpression marking not only God's power in marshalling them all as a host (Isa 40:26), butalso the most intimate knowledge and watchful care, as that of a shepherd for his flock. Joh

10:3.—J.J. Stewart Perowne.

Verse 4. He calleth them all by their names. They render a due obedience to him, as servantsto their master. When he singles them out and calls them by name to do some officialservice, he calls them out to their several offices, as the general of an army appoints thestation of every regiment in a battalion; or, "he calls them by name", i.e. he imposes namesupon them, a sign of dominion, the giving names to the inferior creatures being the first actof Adam's derivative dominion over them. These are under the sovereignty of God. Thestars by their influences fight against Sisera (Jud 5:20); and the sun holds in its reins, andstands stone still to light Joshua to a complete victory: Jos 10:12. They are all marshalled intheir ranks to receive his word of command, and fight in close order, as being desirous tohave a share in the ruin of the enemies of their sovereign.—Stephen Charnock.

Verse 4. The immense distance at which the nearest stars are known to be placed, provesthat they are bodies of a prodigious size, not inferior to our own sun, and that they shine,not, by reflected rays, but by their own native light. But bodies encircled with suchrefulgent splendour, would be of little use in Jehovah's empire, unless surrounding worldswere cheered by their benign influence, and enlightened by their beams. Every star istherefore concluded to be a sun surrounded by planetary globes. early a thousand ofthese luminaries may be seen in a clear winter's night by the naked eye. But these do notform the eighty-thousandth part of what may be descried by the help of telescopes. WhileDr. Herschel was exploring the most crowded part of the milky way, in one quarter of anhour's time no less than 116,000 stars passed through the field of view of his telescope. Ithas been computed, that nearly one hundred millions of stars might be perceived by ourmost perfect instruments, if all the regions of the sky were thoroughly explored. Butimmeasurable regions of space lie beyond the utmost boundaries of human vision, eventhus assisted, into which imagination itself can scarcely penetrate, but which are doubtlessfilled with operations of divine wisdom and divine omnipotence.—Thomas Dick, in "The

Christian Philosopher."

10. CALVI , “ umbering the multitude, etc. As the gathering together of the people ofwhom the Psalmist spoke might appear to be an impossibility, there seems some ground forthe opinion of those who think that he confirms it in this verse. The connection they give tothe Psalmist's words is this -- that as it is at least not more difficult to gather men togetherwho are outcast and scattered, than to number the stars, there was no reason why thewandering exile Israelites should despair of their return, provided they should resort withone consent to God as their only head. There is some probability, too, in the conjecture thatthe Psalmist may allude to that promise –

"Look now towards the stars of heaven, if thou canst tell them,so shall thy seed be." (Genesis 15:5 Genesis 15:5 .)

But as the Psalmist immediately afterward treats of the order of things in naturegenerally, the simplest rendering, I think, is to understand this verse withreference to the admirable work of God to be seen in the heavens, where webehold his matchless wisdom, in regulating, without one degree of aberration,

the manifold, complex, winding courses of the stars. To each of them he assignsits fixed and distinct office, and in all the multitude there is no confusion. Hetherefore exclaims immediately -- Great is God, and boundless, both in power and

understanding. We learn from this that there cannot be greater folly than tomake our judgment the measure of God's works, displaying in these, as he oftendoes, his incomprehensible power and wisdom.”

5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.

1. Barnes, “is our Lord - the notes at Psa_48:1.And of great power - This seems to be added, as in Isa_40:28, in view of the power

required in making the heavens, and in guiding and numbering the stars: “Hast thou notknown? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends ofthe earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?”

His understanding is infinite - Margin, Of his understanding there is no number. That is,This corresponds with his power to number the stars. There is no limit to it. It is notbounded; there is no point reached where it can be said that there is no more; that it isexhausted. See the notes at Isa_40:28: “There is no searching of his understanding.”

2. Clarke, “understanding is infinite - his intelligence there is no number: though henumbers the stars, his understanding is without number. It is infinite; therefore, he canknow, as he can do, all things.

3. Gill, “isour Lord, and of great power,.... "Our Lord" is our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lordof the whole earth; the Lord of his own people by creation, by redemption, by marriage,and by the conquest of his grace, and their voluntary submission to him; he is "great" inhis person, offices, and grace, and therefore greatly to be praised; see Psa_145:3; andparticularly his "power" is very "great", as appears in the creation of all things out ofnothing by him; in the sustaining and support of the world and all things in it: in theredemption of his people from the hand of their powerful enemies; in beginning, carryingon, and perfecting a work of grace on their hearts by his Spirit and power; and in thepreservation of them unto eternal life, through a thousand dangers and difficulties: at hisresurrection all power in heaven and earth were given him as Mediator; and in the latterday he will take to himself his great power and reign; and in the last day will raise the deadout of their graves;

his understanding isinfinite; it reaches to all things, not to the stars of heaven only, as in

Psa_147:4, but to the fowls of the air, to the beasts of the field, and cattle upon a thousandhills; to all on the surface of the earth, or in the bowels of it; and to the fishes of the sea: itreaches to all men, and to all the thoughts of their hearts, the words of their mouths, andthe actions of their lives; it reaches to all things past, that have been, to everything present,and to whatsoever is to come; it includes not only the knowledge of all things that are, orcertainly will be, but of all things possible, or which he could bring into being if he would;it is concerned not only with the quality and nature of things it perfectly understands, butthe quantity of them; even all things in creation and providence, which are without numberand past finding out by men; and so his understanding is without number, and cannot bedeclared, as the word signifies.

4. Charles Wesley,

Infinite God, to Thee we raiseOur hearts in solemn songs of praise,By all Thy works on earth adored,We worship Thee, the common Lord;The everlasting Father own,And bow our souls before Thy throne.

Thee all the choir of angels sings,The Lord of hosts, the King of kings;Cherubs proclaim Thy praise aloud,And seraphs shout the Triune God;And, “Holy, holy, holy,” cry,“Thy glory fills both earth and sky!”

God of the patriarchal race,The ancient seers record Thy praise,The goodly apostolic bandIn highest joy and glory stand;And all the saints and prophets joinTo extol Thy majesty divine.

Head of the martyrs’ noble host,Of Thee they justly make their boast;The church, to earth’s remotest bounds,Her heavenly Founder’s praise resounds;And strives, with those around the throne,To hymn the mystic Three in One.

Father of endless majesty,All might and love they render Thee;Thy true and only Son adore,The same in dignity and power;And God the Holy Ghost declare,The saints’ eternal Comforter.

5. Spurgeon, “Our Lord and King is great—magnanimous, infinite, inconceivably glorious. one can describe his majesty, or reckon up the number of his excellencies. And of great

power. Doing as he wills, and willing to do mighty deeds. His acts reveal something of hismight, but the mass of his power is hidden, for all things are possible with God, even thethings impossible with men. His understanding is infinite. There is no fathoming hiswisdom, or measuring his knowledge. He is infinite in existence, in power, and inknowledge; as these three phrases plainly teach us. The gods of the heathen are nothing,but our God filleth all things. And yet how condescending! For this is he who so tenderlynurses sick souls, and waist to be gracious to sinful men. He brings his boundless powerand infinite understanding to bear upon human distress for its assuagement andsanctification. For all these reasons let his praise be great: even could it be infinite, it wouldnot exceed his due. In the building of his church and the salvation of souls, his greatness,power, and wisdom are all displayed: let him be extolled because of each of these attributes.

6. Treasury of David, “Verse 5. His understanding is infinite. Hebrew: "Of his

understanding there is no number." God is incomprehensible. In place; in time; inunderstanding; in love. First, in place; because no place, no space, can be imagined so great,but God exceeds it, and may be found beyond it. Secondly, in time; because he exceeds alltime: for be was before all time that can be conceived, and shall be after all lime. Time is acreated thing, to attend upon the creation and continuance of all things created andcontinued by God. Thirdly, in understanding; because no created understanding cancomprehend him so that nothing of God may be hid from it. Fourthly, in love because Goddoth exceed all love: no creature can love God according to his worth. All these ways ofincomprehensibleness follow upon his infiniteness.—Thomas Larkham, in "The Attributes

of God Unfolded, and Applied," 1656.

Verse 5. His understanding is infinite. The Divine wisdom is said to be "without number";

that is, the objects of which this wisdom of God can take cognisance are innumerable.—Simon de Muis.

Verse 5. In this verse we have three of God's attributes, his greatness, his power, and hisknowledge; and though only the last of these be expressly said to be infinite, yet is the sameimplied also of the two former; for all the perfections of God being essential to him, mustneed be infinite as he himself is; and therefore what is affirmed of one must, by a parity ofreason, be extended to the rest.—John Conant, 1608-1693.

6 The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.

1. Barnes, “The Lord lifteth up the meek - The humble; the poor; the bowed down; theoppressed. See the notes at Psa_146:8 : “The Lord raiseth them that are bowed down.”

He casteth the wicked down to the ground - See the notes at Psa_146:9 : “The way of thewicked he turneth upside down.”

2. Gill, “The Lord lifteth up the meek,.... The lowly and humble souls, such as are made soby the Spirit of God; he shows them their sinfulness, and want of righteousness; theinsufficiency of their own, and need of Christ's; blowing a blast upon all their goodliness, sobringing down their natural pride and haughtiness, and causing them to submit to Christ,that he alone might be exalted; such as learn of him, who is meek and lowly, and becomethe followers of the humble Jesus; who being partakers of his grace, have low thoughts ofthemselves, as if the least of saints and chief of sinners; and higher thoughts of others; whoascribe all they have and are to the grace of God; and who make no boast of nor place anytrust in anything they do; who quietly submit to every adversity; patiently bear all theinjuries, affronts, and reproaches of men; and are silent under every afflictive dispensationof Providence: these humble ones the Lord exalts in due time; he lifts up their spirits, hecheers and refreshes their souls; raises them to a high estate of grace, sets them amongprinces, gives them honour here, and a crown and kingdom hereafter; these shall inheritthe new earth, in which will dwell righteousness; see Mat_5:5;

he casteth the wicked down to the ground; or "humbles them to the ground" (p); he abasesthe proud and brings them into a low estate, sometimes in this world; however in the nexthe casts them down to hell, even into the lowest hell, which is the portion of all wicked men,of all proud and haughty sinners; see Isa_26:5; compare with these expressions Luk_1:51.Aben Ezra by the "meek" understands the outcasts of Israel, and by the "wicked" thekings of the Gentiles, subject to Israel.

3. Henry, “The pleasure he takes in humbling the proud and exalting those of low degree(Psa_147:6): The Lord lifts up the meek, who abase themselves before him, and whom mentrample on; but the wicked, who conduct themselves insolently towards God and scornfullytowards all mankind, who lift up themselves in pride and folly, he casteth down to the

ground, sometimes by very humbling providences in this world, at furthest in the day whentheir faces shall be filled with everlasting shame. God proves himself to be God by looking

on the proud and abasing them, Job_40:12.

4. Calvin, “The ascription of this to God fitly tends to confirm our hope under affliction,and prevent our souls from fainting under the cross. From this we may infer that althoughour fathers who lived under the Law were more gently dealt with, they knew something atleast of that warfare with which God daily exercises us, in order to make us seek our truerest elsewhere than in this world. Should a doubt steal upon the minds of those who havebeen brought under heavy afflictions, as to the forthcoming of that help which God has

promised to extend, let the truth recur to our remembrance, that we are brought low thatGod may lift us up again. And if upon seeing the prosperity of the wicked we are smittenand inflamed with envy, let the words of the Psalmist come into our mind, That they arelifted up that they may be cast down into destruction. When he speaks of their being cast

down even to the earth, there can be no doubt that he passes an indirect censure upon theirpride which leads them to exalt themselves on high, as if they belonged to some superiororder of beings.

5. Spurgeon, “The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground. Hereverses the evil order of things. The meek are down, and he lifts them up; the wicked areexalted, anti he hurls them down to the dust. The Lord loves those who are reverent tohimself, humble in their own eyes, and gentle to their fellow men: these he lifts up to hope,to peace, to power, to eternal honour. When God lifts a man, it is a lift indeed. Proud menare in their own esteem, high enough already; only those who are low will care to be liftedup, and only such will Jehovah upraise. As for the wicked, they must come down from theirscats of vain glory. God is accustomed to overthrow such; it is his way and habit. one ofthe wicked shall in the end escape. To the earth they must go; for from the earth they came,and for the earth they live. It is one of the glories of our God for which his saints praisehim, that he hath put down the mighty from their seats, and hath exalted them of lowdegree. Well may the righteous be lifted up in spirit and the wicked be downcast as theythink of the judgments of the Lord God. In this verse we see the practical outcome of thatcharacter of Jehovah which leads him to count and call the stars as if they were littlethings, while he deals tenderly with sorrowful men, as if they were precious in his esteem.He is so great that nothing is great to him, and he is so condescending that nothing is littleto him: his infinite majesty thus naturally brings low the lofty and exalts the lowly.

7. Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.

1. Barnes, “Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving - Accompany the praise of God - theexpression of worship - with a grateful remembrance of the past. The one will aid the other,and the two will constitute acceptable and proper worship. The first word here meansproperly to answer, or respond; and the idea would seem to be, that we are to make asuitable response or answer to the manifold layouts which we have received at the hand ofGod.

Sing praise upon the harp unto our God - On the word harp, see the notes at Isa_5:12.The harp was an instrument commonly employed in divine worship. See the notes atPsa_33:2 : “Praise the Lord with harp.” Compare Psa_43:4; Psa_49:4; Psa_57:8;Psa_71:22.

2. Gill, “Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving,.... These are the words of the psalmist untothe Israelites, according to Aben Ezra and Kimchi; but may be an exhortation to all men,especially good men; who are capable of observing the following things concerningprovidential goodness and special grace, on account of which they are called upon to "singunto the Lord": or to "answer" (q); to sing alternately, or by responses; the word is usedfor singing, Hos_2:15; see Exo_15:21; and intends vocal singing, as the next clauseinstrumental singing, as Kimchi observes. However, the Lord is the object of it, to whompraise is to be sung for all the great and good things done by him, and that "withthanksgiving" to God for them; which, though a distinct thing from singing, and may bedone without it, as in prayer; yet singing ought never to be without that; see Eph_5:19;

sing praise upon the harp unto our God; an instrument of music used in the times of theOld Testament; an emblem of the heart, and of making melody in it to the Lord: the heartsof believers are the harps of God, on and with which they sing unto him, when they singaright, and these are in proper tune.

3. K&D 7-11, “With Psa_147:7 the song takes a new flight. ענה ל signifies to strike up orsing in honour of any one, um_21:27; Isa_27:2. The object of the action is conceived of inas the medium of it (cf. e.g., Job_16:4). The participles in Psa_147:8. are attributive בתודה clauses that are attached in a free manner to הכין. לא|הינו signifies to prepare, procure, ase.g., in Job_38:41 - a passage which the psalmist has had in his mind in connection withPsa_147:9. מצמיח, as being the causative of a verb. crescendi, is construed with a doubleaccusative: “making mountains (whither human agriculture does not reach) to bring forthgrass;” and the advance to the thought that God gives to the cattle the bread that they needis occasioned by the “He causeth grass to grow for the cattle” of the model passagePsa_104:14, just as the only hinting אשר יקראו, which is said of the young of the raven(which are forsaken and cast off by their mothers very early), is explained from ילדיו אל־אלbrev ehT .tic .col boJ ni , κράζειν (cf. κρώζειν), is still קרא in Job loc. cit. The verb ישועוmore expressive for the cry of the raven, κόραξ, Sanscrit kârava, than that שוע; κοράττεινand κορακεύεσθαι signify directly to implore incessantly, without taking any refusal.Towards Him, the gracious Sustainer of all beings, are the ravens croaking for their foodpointed (cf. Luk_12:24, “Consider the ravens”), just like the earth that thirsts for rain. Heis the all-conditioning One. Man, who is able to know that which the irrational creatureunconsciously acknowledges, is in the feeling of his dependence to trust in Him and not inhimself. In all those things to which the God-estranged self-confidence of man so readilyclings, God has no delight ( יחפץ, pausal form like יחבש) and no pleasure, neither in thestrength of the horse, whose rider imagines himself invincible, and, if he is obliged to flee,that he cannot be overtaken, nor in the legs of a man, upon which he imagines himself sofirm that he cannot be thrown down, and which, when he is pursued, will presumptivelycarry him far enough away into safety. שוק, Arab. sâq, is the leg from the knee to the foot,from Arab. sâqa, root sq, to drive, urge forward, more particularly to urge on to a gallop(like curs, according to Pott, from the root car, to go). What is meant here is, not that thestrength of the horse and muscular power are of no avail when God wills to destroy a man(Psa_33:16., Amo_2:14.), but only that God has no pleasure in the warrior's horse and in

athletic strength. Those who fear Him, i.e., with a knowledge of the impotency of all powerpossessed by the creature in itself, and in humble trust feel themselves dependent upon Hisomnipotence - these are they in whom He takes pleasure ( רצה with the accusative), thosewho, renouncing all carnal defiance and self-confident self-working, hope in His mercy.

4. Spurgeon, “In this paragraph the contrast announced in the former section is enlargedupon from another point of view, namely, as it is seen in nature and in providence. Singunto the LORD with, thanksgiving; or rather, "respond to Jehovah." He speaks to us in hisworks, let us answer him with our thanks. All that he does is gracious, every movement ofIris hand is goodness; therefore let our hearts reply with gratitude, and our lips with song.Our lives should be responses to divine love. Jehovah is ever engaged in giving, let usrespond with thanksgiving. Sing praise upon the harp unto our God. Blend music withsong. Under a dispensation of ritual the use of music was most commendable, and suitablein the great congregation: those of us who judge it to be less desirable for public worship,under a spiritual economy, because it has led to so many abuses, nevertheless rejoice in it inour privacy, and are by no means insensible to its charms. It seems profanation that choiceminstrelsy should so often be devoted to unworthy themes: the sweetest harmonies shouldbe consecrated to the honour of the Lord. He is our God, and this fact is one choice joy ofthe sing. We have chosen him because he has chosen us; and we see in him peculiaritieswhich distinguish him from all the pretended deities of those among whom we dwell. He isour God in covenant relationship for ever and ever, and to him be praise in every possibleform.

5. CALVI , “Sing to Jehovah in thanksgiving. Again he exhorts to sing the praises of God,intimating at the same time that abundant matter was not wanting, since new proofs stillmeet our eyes of his power, goodness, and wisdom. First he tells us that he covers the

heavens with clouds, and this change would awaken our attention, were we not chargeablewith so much thoughtlessness. Various as are the marvels to be seen in the heavens aboveus, were the same serenity always to continue, we would not have so wonderful a display ofhis power as when he suddenly veils them with clouds, withdrawing the light of the sun,and setting a new face as it were upon the world. He afterwards hints that in this wayprovision is made for all living creatures, for thus the herbs germinate, and the earth issupplied with the moisture which makes it fertile. Thus in connection with the proofs of hispower God sets before our eyes those of his mercy and fatherly consideration for thehuman family; nay, he shows that he does not overlook even the wild beasts and cattle.Philosophers discover the origin of rain in the elements, and it is not denied that clouds areformed from the gross vapors which are exhaled from the earth and sea, but second causesshould not prevent us from recognizing the providence of God in furnishing the earth withthe moisture needed for fructification. As the earth chapped with heat shows its thirst byopening its mouth, so God on his part in sending rain distills drink for it. He might in otherways of a more secret kind give it strength to preserve it from failing, but this irrigation issomething which passes before our eyes to image forth the continual care which he has overus.

6. Verse 7 is a call to praise that is similar to verse 1. Verses 8 and 9 pictureGod providing for His creatures through the operations of His providence.

The psalmist may have mentioned young ravens (v. 9) because they areespecially vulnerable. Ravens do not provide for their young as other birdsdo. They are very selfish (cf. 1 Kings 17:4-6). evertheless God takes careof baby ravens.

8. He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.

1. Barnes, “Who covereth the heaven with clouds - Clouds that are designed to conveyrefreshing rain to the earth. The reasons for praise here stated Psa_147:8-9 are derivedfrom the goodness of God as exhibited in his providential arrangements for the good ofman.

Who prepareth rain for the earth - By causing it to be taken from the sea, carried by theclouds, and conveyed through the air to the places where it is needed, and then gentlysprinkled on the earth. Compare the notes at Psa_104:13 : “He watereth the hills from hischambers.” See also Job_5:10, note; Job_28:26, note; Job_36:27-28, notes; Job_38:28, note;Job_38:37, note.

Who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains - Which would be barren but for therain. Who conveys the water thus to the very tops of the mountains, and causes it todescend on their sides, so that even the mountains are clothed with verdure and beauty.Compare the notes at Psa_104:14 : “He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle.”

2. Clarke, “Who covereth the heaven with clouds - Collects the vapours together, in orderto cause it to rain upon the earth. Even the direction of the winds, the collection of theclouds, and the descent of the rain, are under the especial management of God. Thesethings form a part of his providential management of the world.

Maketh grass to grow upon the mountains - After this clause the Vulgate, the Septuagint,Ethiopic, Arabic, and Anglo-Saxon, add, and herb for the service of man. It appears that ahemistich, or half-line, has been lost from the Hebrew text; which, according to the aboveVersions, must have stood thus: ועשב לעבדת האדם veeseb laabodath haadam, as inPsa_104:14 : “And herbage for the service of mankind.”

3. Gill, “ Who covereth the heaven with clouds,.... Which are exhalations of vapours out ofthe earth, and of waters out of the sea, by the sun, and formed into clouds; which arecarried about in the air, and let down in showers of rain upon the earth, in proper places,for the good of the inhabitants; and sometimes, when necessary, the heavens are coveredand become black with them, as in the times of Ahab, 2Ki_18:35; and though they lookdark, dull, and melancholy, yet are for great usefulness: hereby, as it follows, rain is

prepared for the earth, to make it fruitful, to bring forth an increase for men and beasts;and is a wonderful display of the wisdom, power, and goodness of God, for which he is tobe praised. This may be either an emblem of afflictive dispensations of Providence, whichsometimes make a dark and cloudy day, a day of clouds and thick darkness; especiallywhen the Lord covers himself with a cloud, or hides his face from his people; their sins, asclouds interposing between him and them; and yet these afflictions and desertions, thoughnot joyous, but grievous, tend to make the saints more holy, humble, and fruitful: or else ofthe churches being supplied with Gospel ministers; the "heaven", and so the "kingdom ofheaven", often signifies the church of God or Christ; consisting of men, partakers of theheavenly calling, being born from above; and in which the Gospel and ordinances, thatcome from heaven, are ministered; and which, for the communion had with God, and theprivileges of it, is as it were the suburbs and gate of heaven. Ministers of the word are"clouds" full of the rain of heavenly and evangelic doctrine, which they drop and distil asthe rain and dew upon the mown grass; and the covering the heavens with them maydenote the plenty of them, or a sufficient number of them, as in the first times of theGospel: all which are of God, who gives to his churches pastors after his own heart; andcommands and directs those where to drop the rain of doctrine, and where not, for whichhe is to be praised; see Isa_5:6;

who prepareth rain for the earth; which is purely his preparation, production, and gift, towater the earth and make it fruitful, and is what none of the vanities or idols of the Gentilescould give; and what he prepares in the clouds, the heavens are covered with: to this theword of God and the evangelic doctrine is compared, because of its original; it is of God,and from heaven; it is dispensed and falls by divine direction, and sometimes in one place,and sometimes in another; and often in great plenty, as at the first, so in the last times ofthe Gospel dispensation; and brings many blessings of grace and goodness with it; and, likerain, is cooling, softening, refreshing, and fructifying; and this is prepared of God, andordained by him before the world was, for the good of his people; see Deu_32:2, 1Co_2:6;

who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains; which would be otherwise dry and barren;but, by the clouds letting down rain upon them, grass grows on them for the cattle on athousand hills. "Mountains", in a figurative sense, signify churches, high, strong, well-rounded, visible, and where God makes a feast of fat things for his people, Isa_25:6;"grass" denotes true believers, they of the city which flourish like grass; to which they arelike, for their weakness in themselves, their number, verdure, and fruitfulness, and fortheir growth in the church; which is greatly owing to the Gospel and ordinances as means,the ram of Gospel doctrine, the pure, sincere, and unadulterated word of God; by whichsouls grow in grace, and in the knowledge of divine things; see Psa_72:16.

4. Henry, “ The provision he makes for the inferior creatures. Though he is so great as tocommand the stars, he is so good as not to forget even the fowls, Psa_147:8, Psa_147:9.Observe in what method he feeds man and beast. (1.) He covereth the heaven with clouds,

which darken the air and intercept the beams of the sun, and yet in them he prepareth thatrain for the earth which is necessary to its fruitfulness. Clouds look melancholy, and yetwithout them we could have no rain and consequently no fruit. Thus afflictions, for thepresent, look black, and dark, and unpleasant, and we are in heaviness because of them, as

sometimes when the sky is overcast it makes us dull; but they are necessary, for from theseclouds of affliction come those showers that make the harvest to yield the peaceable fruits of

righteousness (Heb_12:11), which should help to reconcile us to them. Observe thenecessary dependence which the earth has upon the heavens, which directs us on earth todepend on God in heaven. All the rain with which the earth is watered is of God'spreparing. (2.) By the rain which distils on the earth he makes grass to grow upon the

mountains, even the high mountains, which man neither takes care of nor reaps the benefitof. The mountains, which are not watered with the springs and rivers, as the valleys are,are yet watered so that they are not barren. (3.) This grass he gives to the beast for his food,

the beast of the mountains which runs wild, which man makes no provision for. And eventhe young ravens, which, being forsaken by their old ones, cry, are heard by him, and waysare found to feed them, so that they are kept from perishing in the nest.

6. “From the majestic to the minute God dresses everything with beauty. God could makethe grass and all of nature live and thrive without rain, but he doesn’t. God uses meansrather than doing all things directly. He has established a system with laws that operateobjectively. God made heaven the source of life and beauty on earth that man might seethat nature calls us to look up and see that all good and perfect gifts come from the Fatherabove.

As near as green grass to a hillAs petals of Gold to a daffodil,As near as the sunlight is to the sod,So near to the human heart is God.”unknown author

7. DAVID WHITELet’s use our insight to look in three directions, to move us to be more grateful towardGod.

1 - Looking AROU D Us Should Stimulate Thanksgiving. (vv. 1-9)1. Looking around at the beautiful scenery (Ps.147:8). (1) God has made a beautiful world for us to live in and enjoy. 2. Looking around us at broken sinners (See Luke 15- the prodigal son). (1) Seeing people whose lives sin has wrecked.(2) ot superiority as a Christian, but rather a spirit of thankfulness that God has broughtyou out by His great grace. 3. Looking around us at God’s bountiful supply. But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.Phil. 4:19 (KJV) (1) God has granted us far more than we have deserved.

2 - Looking I Should Stimulate Us To Thanksgiving. (vv. 10-11, 14)1. Looking in I see the miracle of salvation.

3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life andgodliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: 4 Wherebyare given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might bepartakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world throughlust. 2 Pet. 1:4 (KJV) (1) All born again people have a "divine nature." [Inclined to holiness of thought and life]2. There is ministry of the Holy Spirit.8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But ye are not in the flesh, but inthe Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. ow if any man have not the Spirit ofChrist, he is none of his. Rom. 8:8-9 (KJV) 3. There is a new peace. 165 ¶ Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. Ps. 119:165(KJV) (1) The wicked do not know real, satisfying, lasting peace.21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. Isa. 57:21 (KJV)

3 - Looking UP Should Stimulate Us To Thanksgiving. (vv. 15-19)When we look toward heaven through the eyes of the Bible we see several things. 1. A powerful God (Ps. 147:15-19). (1) When God unleashes His omnipotent power that no one can successfully stand againstHim. 2. The passion of Christ. (1) In Acts 7:55, when Stephen was being stoned we see Jesus standing. He gave attentionto the plight of His servant–godly Stephen. 54 ¶ When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on himwith their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven,and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56 And said,Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.Acts 7:54-56 (KJV) 3. The pleading Christ (1 Jn. 2:1). [Our Heavenly Lawyer – Illus. John London Arnold.]1 ¶ My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, wehave an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 2 And he is the propitiationfor our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 Jn. 2:1-2(KJV)

What God takes pleasure in. (vv. 10-11) 10 He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of aman. 11 The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.Ps. 147:10-11(KJV) (VISUALIZE – ACT)

8. SPURGEO , “Who covereth the heaven with clouds. He works in all things, above as wellas below. Clouds are not caused by accident, but produced by God himself, and made toassume degrees of density by which the blue firmament is hidden. A sky scape might seemto be a mere fortuitous concourse of vapours, but it is not so: the Great Artist's hand thuscovers the canvas of the heavens. Who prepareth rain for the earth. The Lord preparesclouds with a view to rain, and rain with an eye to the fields below. By many concurrent

circumstances all things are made ready for the production of a shower; there is more ofart in the formation of a rain cloud and in the fashioning of a rain drop, than appears tosuperficial observers. God is in the vapour, and in the pearly drop which is born of it. Who

maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. By the far reaching shower he producesvegetation where the hand of man is all unknown. He cares not only for Goshen's fertileplains, but for Carmel's steep ascents. God makes the heavens the servants of the earth,and the clouds the irrigators of the mountain meadows. This is a kind of evolution aboutwhich there can be no dispute. or does the Lord forget the waste and desolate places, butcauses the lone hills to be the first partakers of his refreshing visitations. This is after themanner of our God. He not only causes rain to descend from the heavens to water thegrass, and thus unites the skies and the herbs by a ministry of mercy; but he also thinks ofthe rocky ledges among the hills, and forgets not the pastures of the wilderness. What aGod is this!

"Passing by the rich and great,For the poor and desolate."

9. Treasury of David, “The heavens work upon the elements, the elements upon the earth,and the earth yieldeth fruits for the use of man. The prophet taketh notice of thisadmirable gradation: "I will hear the heavens, and the heavens shall hear the earth; andthe earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and the corn, and the wine, and theoil, shall hear Jezreel" (Ho 2:21-22). We look to the fields for the supplies of corn, wine,and oil; but they can do nothing without clouds, and the clouds can do nothing withoutGod. The creatures are beholden to one another, and all to God. In the order of the worldthere is an excellent chain of causes, by which all things hang together, that so they maylead up the soul to the Lord.—Thomas Manton.

Verse 8. Who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. The wild grasses are taken, as itwere, under the special providence of God. In the perennial verdure in regions above thezone of man's cultivation, we have a perpetual proof of God's care of the lower animalsthat neither sow nor reap. The mountain grasses grow spontaneously; they require noculture but such as the rain and the sunshine of heaven supply. They obtain theirnourishment directly from the inorganic soil, and are independent of organic materials. owhere is the grass so green and vigorous as on the beautiful slopes of lawn like pasturehigh up in the Alps, radiant with the glory of wild flowers, and ever musical with the humof grasshoppers, and the tinkling of cattle bells. Innumerable cows and goats browse uponthem; the peasants spend their summer months in making cheese and hay from them forwinter consumption in the valleys. This exhausting system of husbandry has been carriedon during untold centuries; no one thinks of manuring the Alpine pastures; and yet nodeficiency has been observed in their fertility, though the soil is but a thin covering spreadover the naked rocks. It may be regarded as a part of the same wise and graciousarrangement of Providence, that the insects which devour the grasses on the Kuh andSchaf Alpen, the pastures of the cows and sheep, are kept in check by a predominance ofcarnivorous insects. In all the mountain meadows it has been ascertained that the species of

carnivorous are at least four times as numerous as the species of herb eating insects. Thus,in the absence of birds, which are rare in Switzerland, the pastures are preserved from aterrible scourge. To one not aware of this check, it may seem surprising how the verdure ofthe Alpine pastures should be so rich and luxuriant considering the immense developmentof insect life. The grass, whenever the sun shines, is literally covered with them—butterfliesof gayest hues, and beetles of brightest iridescence; and the air is filled with their loudmurmurs. I remember well the vivid feeling of God's gracious providence, which possessedme when passing over the beautiful Wengern Alp at the foot of the Jungfrau, and seeing,wherever I rested on the green turf, alive with its tiny inhabitants, the balance of nature sowonderfully preserved between the herb which is for man's food and the moth beforewhich he is crushed. Were the herbivorous insects allowed to multiply to their full extent,in such favourable circumstances as the warmth of the air and the verdure of the earth inSwitzerland produce, the rich pastures which now yield abundant food for upwards of amillion and a half of cattle would speedily become bare and leafless deserts. ot only intheir power of growing without cultivation, but also in the peculiarities of their structure,the mountain grasses proclaim the hand of God. Many of them are viviparous. Instead ofproducing flowers and seed, as the grasses in the tranquil valleys do, the young plantsspring from them perfectly formed. They cling round the stem and form a kind of blossom.In this state they remain until the parent stalk withers and falls prostrate on the ground,when they immediately strike root and form independent grasses. This is a remarkableadaptation to circumstances; for it is manifest that were seeds instead of living plantsdeveloped in the ears of the mountain grasses, they would be useless in the stormy regionswhere they grow. They would be blown away far from the places they were intended toclothe, to spots foreign to their nature and habits, and thus the species would speedilyperish. The more we think of it, the more we are struck with the wise foresight whichsuggested the creative fiat, "Let the earth bring forth grass." It is the most abundant andthe most generally diffuse of all vegetation. It suits almost every soil and climate.—Hugh

Macmillan, in "Bible Teachings in :ature," 1868.

Verses 8-9. The Hebrews had no notion of what we denominate "secondary laws", butbelieved that God acted directly upon matter, and was the immediate, efficient cause of thesolemn order, and the varied and wonderful phenomena of nature. Dispensing thus withthe whole machinery of cause and effect, as we employ those terms in philosophicallanguage, their minds were brought into immediate contact with God in his manifoldworks, and this gave, both to devotion and the spirit of poetry, the liveliest inspiration andthe freest scope of action. Heaven and earth were governed by his commands; the thunderwas his "voice", the lightning his "arrows." It is he who "causeth the vapour to ascendfrom the ends of the earth." When the famished city should call upon the corn, the wine,and the oil, and those should call upon the earth for nourishment, and the parched earthshould call upon the heavens for moisture, and the heavens should call upon the Lord forpermission to refresh the earth, then Jehovah would hear and supply. He gave the rain,and he sent the drought and famine. The clouds were not looked upon merely as sustainedby a law of specific gravity, but God spread them out in the sky; these clouds were God'schariot. The curtains of his pavilion, the dust of his feet. Snow and hail were fearfulmanifestations of God, often sent as the messengers of his wrath.—G. Hubbard, in "Bate's

Encylopeaedia," 1865.

Verses 8-9. God by his special providence prepares food for those who have no other caretaken for them. Beasts that live among men are by men taken care of; they enrich theground with manure and till the ground; and that brings forth corn for the use of thesecattle as well as men. But the wild beasts that live upon the mountains, and in the woods anddesert places, are fed only from the heavens: the rain that from thence distils enriches thosedry hills and maketh grass to grow there, which else would not, and so God giveth to thesewild beasts their food after the same manner of Divine Providence as in the end of the versehe is said to provide for the young ravens.—Henry Hammond.

9. He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call.

1. Barnes, “He giveth to the beast his food - To the wild beast; to the animals that cannottoil for it themselves, as man does. Compare Psa_104:21, note; Psa_104:27-28, notes.

To the young ravens which cry - Compare the notes at Job_38:41. See also Psa_145:15.

2. Gill, “He giveth to the beast his food,.... Through the plenty of grass growing upon themountains, by the rain falling from the clouds of heaven upon them: these cannot providefor themselves, but the Lord feeds them; and they wait upon him for their food, and receiveit of him, Psa_104:27. How much more will he feed his own people, both with temporal andspiritual food; though in their fallen state they are become like the beasts, of which they aresensible when called by grace, and own and acknowledge it! Psa_49:12;

and to the young ravens which cry: which are particularly mentioned, becausecontemptible creatures, and of no use and service to men, and by the ceremonial law wereimpure to the Jews; and the rather, because, as naturalists observe, they are very earlyturned out of their nests, or forsaken by their dams: and this particular instance of the careof Providence is elsewhere observed, Job_38:41. Arama takes notice of the preservation ofthis creature in the ark, and the use of it to Elijah. The Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Ethiopic,and Arabic versions, render it, "that call upon him"; that is, upon God and to him; theyare expressly said to cry, Job_38:41. The ancient fathers interpret this figuratively; and bythe "ravens" understand the Gentiles; and by their "young ones" Christians that springfrom them, who call upon the true God.

3. God is in the food service business. God has made nature uniform and purposeful. Godcares for animals and provides for them through nature. God who made all the stars caresabout the raven crying for a worm.

4. CALVI , “Who gives to the cattle their food. By giving an instance he explains moreclearly what he had said, of God's providing food for every living creature. When he speaksof the cattle and the ravens being fed, and not of men, this is to give more emphasis to hisargument. We know that it was for man's sake the world was made at all, and endued withfertility and plenty; and in proportion as we are nearer in the scale of existence to God, heshows us the more of his goodness. But if he condescends to notice the brute creation, it isplain that to us he will be a nurse and a father. For the same reason he names the ravens,

the most contemptible of all birds, to teach us that the goodness of God extends to everypart of the world. When he says that their young cry unto God, he no doubt refers to theirnatural cry, but hints at the same time that they own that they must be in want unless Godgive them meat from heaven. As to the Jewish fable that the ravens desert their young onesas soon as put forth, and that worms are bred in the barks of the trees to feed them, this isone of their customary stories, never scrupling as they do, nor being ashamed, to invent

anything, however unfounded, when a difficulty comes in the way.33 It is enough for us to

know that the whole system of nature is so regulated by God, that not even the young

ravens want their food, when with hoarse outcry they confess that they are in need, and

that they cannot have it supplied except by God.

5. SPURGEO Treasury of David

Verse 9. He giveth to the beast his food. By causing the grass to grow on the hills the Lordfeeds the cattle. God careth for the brute creation. Men tread grass under foot as though itwere nothing, but God causeth it to grow: too often men treat their cattle with cruelty, butthe Lord himself feedeth them. The great God is too good, and, indeed, too great tooverlook things that are despised. Say not, "Doth God care for oxen?" Indeed he does, andhe permits himself to be here described as giving them their food as husbandmen are wontto do. And to the young ravens which cry. These wild creatures, which seem to be of no useto man; are they therefore worthless? By no means; they fill their place in the economy ofnature. When they are mere fledgelings, and can only clamour to the parent birds for food,the Lord does not suffer them to starve, but supplies their needs. Is it not wonderful howsuch numbers of little birds are fed! A bird in a cage under human care is in more dangerof lacking seed and water than any one of the myriads that fly in the open heavens, with noowner but their Creator, and no provider but the Lord. Greatness occupied with littlethings makes up a chief feature of this Psalm. Ought we not all to feel special joy inpraising One who is so specially remarkable for his care of the needy and the forgotten?Ought we not also to trust in the Lord? for he who feeds the sons of the raven will surelynourish the sons of God! Hallelujah to Him who both feeds the ravens and rules the stars!What a God art thou, O Jehovah!

Verse 9. The young ravens cry. The strange stories told by Jewish and Arabian writers, onthe raven's cruelty to its young, in driving them out of their nests before they are quite ableto provide for themselves, are entirely without foundation, as no bird is more careful of its

young ones than the raven. To its habit of flying restlessly about in search of food to satisfyits own appetite and that of its young ones, may perhaps be traced the reason of its beingselected by the sacred writers as an especial object of God's protecting care.—W.

Houghton, in "The Bible Educator."

Verse 9. The young ravens cry. While still unfledged the young ravens have a strange habitof falling out of their nests, and flapping their wings heavily to the ground. ext morningthey are found by the shepherds sitting croaking on the ground beneath their formerhomes, and are then captured and taken away with comparative ease.—J.G. Wood, in "The

Illustrated :atural History," 1869.

Verse 9. The young ravens cry. The evening proceedings and manoeuvres of the rooks arecurious and amusing in the autumn. Just before dusk they return in long strings from theforaging of the day, and rendezvous by thousands over Selbourne down, where they wheelround in the air, and sport and dive in a playful manner, all the while exerting their voices,and making a loud cawing, which, being blended and softened by the distance that we atthe village are below them, becomes a confused noise or chiding; or rather a pleasingmurmur, very engaging to the imagination, and not unlike the cry of a pack of hounds inhollow, echoing woods, or the rushing of the wind in tall trees, or the tumbling of the tideupon a pebbly shore. When this ceremony is over, with the last gleam of day, they retire forthe night to the deep beechen woods of Tisted and Ropley. We remember a little girl, who,as she was going to bed, use to remark on such all occurrence, in the true spirit of physico-theology, that the rooks were saying their prayers, and yet this child was much too youngto be aware that the Scriptures had said of the Deity that He feedeth the ravens that call

upon him.—Gilbert White (1720-1793), in "The :atural History of Selborne."

Verse 9.

Behold, and look away your low despair;See the light tenants of the barren air:To them, nor stores, nor granaries belong, ought but the woodlands and the pleasing song;Yet, your kind heavenly Father bends his eyeOn the least wing that flits along the sky.To him they sing when Spring renews the plain;To him they cry in Winter's pinching reign; or is the music, nor their plaint, in vain.He hears the gay, and the distressful call,And with unsparing bounty fills them all.Will he not care for you, ye faithless, say?Is he Unwise? Or, are ye less than they?—James Thomson, 1700-1748.

Verse 9. It is related of Edward Taylor, the sailor preacher of Boston, that on the Sundaybefore he was to sail for Europe, he was entreating the Lord to care well for his churchduring his absence. All at once he stopped, and ejaculated, "What have I done? Distrustthe Providence of heaven! A God that gives a whale a ton of herrings for a breakfast, willhe not care for my children?" and then went on, closing his prayer in a more confiding

manner.—From "Eccentric Preachers," by C.H.S.

6. Stephen FournierTHE RAVE S CRYPSA. 147:9There is was a young man by the name of Gary in fact Gary lived right over here onGoodyear Lake. ow Gary had head a tail that had been passed on through his family thathis father, grandfather and great-grandfather had all walked on water on their 21stbirthdays. So, on his 21st birthday, Bob headed out to the lake. "If they did it, I can too!"he insisted.When Gary arrived at the lake, he rented a boat and began paddling. When hegot to the middle of the lake, Gary stepped off of the side of the boat ... well he nearlydrowned. Furious and somewhat embarrassed headed for home.

When Gary arrived back home, he asked his grandmother for an explanation. "Grandma,why can I not walk water on my 21st birthday like my father, and his father, and his fatherbefore him?"The feeble old grandmother took Gary by the hands, looked into his eyes, andexplained, "That’s because your father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were born inJanuary. You were born in July, dear."

With that said I would like you to turn to our passage for today, which is Psa. 147:9. Thatwould be page 546 in your pew Bible. Today we are continuing our series of messages onprayer. ow we may cover some things that we covered last week, but if you look to theWord of God one of the ways in which God teaches us things is through repetition. Whilethey may not be presented in the same way some of the concepts that we will be looking attoday, may some familiar.

Psa. 147:9 “He gives to the beast its food, And to the young ravens that cry.”

As I begin this morning I want to share with you something about ravens. It seem whenyoung ravens are all grown up in able to fly on their own the parent raven kicks them outof the nest and sets them off to find there own food. o matter how much the young ravencalls it’s parents will not bring it food, it is on it’s own. So who provides for the raven, theWord of God tells us He does. God provides food for the beast and to the young ravens thatcry because they have gotten throw out of their nests. What the Lord is telling us in this passage is that He is the provider. He provides for Hiscreation. We see the hand of God in creation and we ought to be willing to learn from that. This passage reminds me of what is stated in Rom. 1:20; “For since the creation of theworld His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that aremade, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,” Many of thethings that we can learn about God can be learned from His creation.

The general lesson that we can learn from a raven’s cry is found in the words of our Lordin Luke 12:24 there the Lord states; “Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap,which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value

are you than the birds?” Following the Lord Jesus’ logic here I want us to consider theravens as the cry. That cry out with croaking kind of sound, yet as harsh as they soundthey make their needs known to the Lord and the Father hears their prayers and sendsthem food. They seek the favor of God and receive it.

Do you pray to seek the favor of God, and are you not much better then the raven. If Godcares so for the ravens will he not care for you. If God is so willing to provide of the need ofa creature such as a raven, how much more is He willing to provide for your need. As I preach this message this morning my goal will be to encourage those who have beenpraying for the mercy of God, to encourage those who have been crying out to God, butperhaps have not seen and answer or have not found peace in the answer. We must neverfall for the lie of Satan that God will not hear your prayer. Whether you are praying formercy, for strength, or even salvation God hears your prayer. There are several truths thatwant us to look at this morning.

First of all, Psa. 147:9 speaks of a raven that cries, and that you are much better then araven. We normally do not see Ravens in the wild in this area of the country. They arefound north of us towards Canada, although there are found in the Appalachianmountains. But they are part of the crow family, and we are all familiar with crows. In factravens look very much like crows but they tend to be a little bigger. Both birds however dosound the same, their cry is the same. The reason I bring that up is that while we may notknow what kind of bird the raven we all know what kind of birds crows are. We find themdisgusting for the most part. They eat road kill and other carrion. We see them a lot onFridays along Rt. 28 because that is garbage day. We see them picking through and eatingtrash. They are a dirty looking kind of bird.

When we see a dead crow on the road (one that was to slow getting out of the way of car asit feasted on a dead squirrel) it does not touch are hearts like seeing a dog or cat, or cutelittle bunny does. In fact I have been responsible for the demise of many a crow. (In Yyou can hunt crow but only on Fri-Mon.). There is no outpouring of sorrow at the death ofcrow. Yet that is the kind of creature which God states he provides for. He hears that cryof the raven, the cry of the crow.

My point in telling you all that is why do we think that God would hear the cry of crow yetignore your prayer. You see my friends are an immortal soul. When a crow dies he is gone,life is over, he exists no more. But when your present life passes you will not cease to be, butyou have begun a life of eternity. When we pass from this life to the next we have justbegun to live forever. Please understand that you will outlive the mountains, you willoutlive the sun and the stars.

So do you think that God will here the poor bird that is here but for a moment and theblotted out of existence, yet he will not hear you an immortal soul a soul who existence willbe equal to Gods. While you are unlike God in that you did not always exist you are likeGod in that you will always be.

Also ravens are not said to be made in the image of God. While the human race my be

defiled, deformed and debased by sin, we are underneath it all made in the image of God.There is something in man that is not found in any other creature. All animals are underthe subjection of man, because we are the only ones made in the image of God, we are theonly ones with a living soul. So do we think that God would hear the cry of so low acreature as a crow or a raven, yet not hear the cry of one made in His own image? It cannotbe so.

Certainly God will hear our prayer when we humble ourselves before Him. It is interestingthat in Psa. 147 God does not mention the hawk or falcon, which are beautiful majesticbirds. He does not mention the nightingale or the Robin with their beautiful songs. But Hechooses the croaking raven, a bird which most men find repulsive. They do not sing butcroak, they eat carrion, and pick through our garbage spreading all over the place. But that is the wonder of God. What kindness in that He provides food for such a vialcreature.

God does not despise any work of His hands. He provides for the dove and the raven. Let us understand that we are liken unto God as the raven is to us. While the crow is madevial to us through its picking through garbage. Think of God looks as we pick through thegarbage that is sin. As unworthy as we may think the crow is to receive provisions fromGod, we are just as unworthy, even more so. For the crow or raven cannot sin, it cannotrebel against God, yet we can and we do. Praise be to God that we have a Saviour to makeus righteous before God. Praise be to God that we have one who as paid the price for sin,our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Praise God that through Christ we know that the Lordnot only hears the cry of the raven, but He will hear our cry as well.

The second truth I want to point out is that there is great deal of difference between yourcry and the cry of raven. When a young raven cries it is cry of instinct. It is it’s instinct thatmakes it cry for food. But their cry does not express that want. The raven cannot expresstheir wants. If you were to hear a raven cry you would not hear it say “Hey I want somefood.” They have no speech, they do not utter a single word to tell of their need.

We on the other hand most of the time know what we want. We know what we desire andwe are able to communicate those things to the Father above. You know that you need themercy of God and are able to communicate that, you know that you need Jesus, Hisprecious blood, His perfect righteousness. ow if God can discern the strange cackling ofthe raven, let us not think that He will not hear the rational cry of a guilty sinner who callsout, “God be merciful to me a sinner.”

Surly if the persistent cry of raven prevails with God, how much more with the cry of Hispeople come to His ear. May our prayers not be like the croaking sound of the raven butmay it be laced with praise to our God, may our prayers be full of thanksgiving, may theyanointed with worship to the most High God. While the cackling of the raven may be abeautiful sound to the Lord as it cries out for its needs to be meant, thing of how more thesound of our prayer, filled with praise and worship will be to the Lord.

It can also be said however that sometimes the raven has an advantage over some who

pray, for the young raven is at times more earnest about their food then some areconcerning their souls. When a raven is in want of food there is no silencing it, it will cryuntil it gets what it desires or it will cry until it dies.

So often we give up. Often times we are not as persistent as the raven. We pray for a timethen allow our unbelief to set in and we stop. We forget the words of 1 Thess 5:17; “praywithout ceasing,” We forget the parable of our Lord in Luke 11 where the Lord teaches usto be persistent prayer. We need to learn that if the Lord will hear the persistent cry ofraven, He will hear our persistent cry of prayer.

The third truth I want us to learn is that the prayers of God’s people are much sweeter toHis ear then the ravens cry for meat. All that the raven cries for is food. What do you cryfor. Mercy, grace, forgiveness, wisdom, healing, strength.

Do we believe that God enjoys giving a crow carrion more then He would enjoy giving youmercy or grace or forgiveness. By which is God more glorified, saving a sinner, healing abroken spirit or body, or providing road kill for a crow.

I cannot believe that God does not find greater joy in giving to us those spiritual gifts, ingiving to us those thing the sustain us, then in giving the young raven his meat.

If God is pleased in supplying the needs of the beasts of the field, do you not think that Hewould delight much more in supplying the need of His own children? Certainly God ismore gracious then us. For those of you who have children of your own, do you not getgreater joy in giving your children gifts then in feeding your dog. Do you not find greatsatisfaction in providing for the need of your children then you do for your pet. So howmuch more gracious and good is God then we are.

ot to say that we do not love our pets, but are not our loved ones immensely moreimportant and precious to us. Thus it is with God, all of His creation is precious to Him, yetare not those made in His image more so?

Therefor when we call on God, when we cry out to Him let us give Him the opportunity todo that which He loves to do, that which He delights in. Micah 7:18 tells us; “Who is a Godlike You, Pardoning iniquity And passing over the transgression of the remnant of Hisheritage? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy.” Let us seek the mercy of God through prayer. I also would point you the story of theprodigal son found in Luke 15. Read that parable that teaches us the God rejoices giving usmercy, He rejoices in saving sinners, He rejoices in seeing His children come to Him.

The fourth truth to look at is the fact that no where in the Bible are ravens commanded tocry. When they cry out theirs is a petition that does not have a source in any exhortationfrom the Lord. Yet we on the other hand are commanded to pray. If the Lord welcomesthose which He has not invited, how much more will He welcome those who are invited.

This was topic that we spoke of last week. Remember our passage from last week? Jer.

33:3; “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which youdo not know.” We have the command to call to God. The raven receives without beingcalled, would God deny those whom He has commanded to pray.

As I stated last week there is perhaps to command that is repeated more often in all ofScripture then the command to pray. We are all commanded to pray. Whether we aresaved or unsaved. To the saved the Lord commands in Psa 50:15; Call upon Me in the dayof trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me." To the unsaved the Lord iscommanding you; “For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” That isthe command that goes out to those who have never trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord andSavior. So whether you are saved or unsaved you have a command to pray. And just as the Lordhears the call of the raven, He will hear your call.

The fifth truth I will point out is that the cry of the young raven is nothing more the anatural cry of a creature. It is it’s natural response to hunger. Yet if you cry out to God,and our sincere it is a result of a work of grace in your heart. When the raven cries out for food for its belly it is nothing but the raven itself crying out.But when you cry out “God be merciful to me a sinner” it is a cry that come by the HolySpirit of God.

It is by the Spirit of God that we cry out to our heavenly Father. The Word of God inRomans 8:15 tells us; “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but youreceived the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father.”

Prayer is not a natural thing like the cry of raven it is a spiritual thing. We can teach ourchildren to say their prayers, but we cannot teach them to pray. We can make a prayerbook, but we cannot place prayer in-between cardboard covers. We can read prayers, infact I read a book of prayers as part of my quit time with the Lord, but we may read thoseprayers for 100 years and never pray. Prayer my friends is quite a different thing then justwords.

Charles Spurgeon puts it this way. “True prayer is the trading of the heart with God, andthe heart never comes into spiritual commerce with the ports of heaven until God the HolyGhost puts wind into the sails and speeds the ship into its haven.” If there is genuine prayer in your heart then God the Holy Spirit is there.

The final truth I want to point out this morning is that when the young raven cries it criesalone but when we pray to God we do not pray alone. For we have one who makesintercession for us. Rom. 8:34 tells us; “It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen,who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.”We do not pray alone for we a risen Saviour who sits on the right hand of the Fatherpraying for us, interceding on our behalf. Heb. 7:24-25 also tells us concerning Christ; “But He, because He continues forever, has anunchangeable priesthood. Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those whocome to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Christ lives to make intercession for the saints, those He is able to save to the utmost. Whenyou pray you are not alone in your prayers. When you cry out to God there is One who iscrying out with you.

While the raven may knows what sound to make whenever He is hungry there are timeswhen we know not what to pray for. I stated earlier that most of the time we do know whatare desire is, but there are those times when we are not sure what it is that we need to askfor, but again we are not alone. Romans 8:26 tells us “Likewise the Spirit also helps in ourweaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the SpiritHimself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

Let us praise God that we never have to pray alone, that there is one greater then us,interceding for us, both God the Son our Lord Jesus Christ and God the Holy Spirit.

So we have seen that these quite a bit we can learn from a one of God’s creatures. Myprayer is that you have been encouraged to pray. If a raven knows it’s need of God andcries out for food, I pray that you would recognize the need you have to pray to yourcreator.

To those of you who know the Lord as your personal Lord and Saviour I again read to youPsa. 50:15; “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorifyMe.”

To those of you who have never trusted in the Lord Jesus as Saviour to I read Romans10:9-13: “if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that Godhas raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is madeunto salvation. For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to allwho call upon Him. For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

Will you call upon the Lord today for salvation? If you have any questions regarding yoursalvation please speak with myself, or someone you know has a personal relationship withJesus Christ. Trust in the Lord today, cry out to Him today, and He will answer you.

10. His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man;

1. Barnes, “He delighteth not in the strength of the horse - The horse is among the noblest

works of God - perhaps the noblest of all the animals that he has made. See the notes atJob_39:19-25. Yet God regards with more interest and pleasure humble piety than he doesany mere power, however great and wonderful it may be.

He taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man - ot the same pleasure as in piety; he prefersthe humble heart to this. The reference is to man as capable of rapid marches, of quickmovements in assaulting an enemy; the allusion being, perhaps, to an army prepared forwar - cavalry and infantry - the horse moving on with resistless force - the foot-soldierswith rapid motion.

2. Clarke, “He delighteth not - The horse, among all animals, is most delighted in by manfor beauty, strength, and fleetness. And a man’s legs, if well proportioned, are moreadmired than even the finest features of his face. Though God has made these, yet they arenot his peculiar delight.

3. Gill, “He delighteth not in the strength of the horse,.... It has been his will and pleasure togive the horse strength for the use and service of men, both for labour and war; and as thisis a creature of his, and the work of his hands, it must be agreeable to him, Job_39:19 yet ahorse, though prepared for the battle, is a vain thing for safety, which is only of the Lord;neither can it deliver any by its great strength; nor are a king and his country saved by themultitude of an host, or by a large cavalry: nor are these what the Lord delights in, nordoes he save men for the sake of them; though a well-mounted cavalry may be a pleasingsight to men, and they may raise their expectations, and promise themselves great thingsfrom them; yet these are of no account with God, who can save as well without them aswith them, Pro_21:31. The Targum is,

"he delighteth not in the strength of those that ride on horses;''

that are well mounted, and pride themselves in it; and are equipped for war, and aremighty to engage in it, and prepared to make their escape in danger: Kimchi's note is,

"he delighteth not in man, who puts his confidence in the strength of the horse;''

see Psa_20:8;

he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man; in which his strength lies, and of which he is aptto glory; but should not, it being displeasing to God; who delights not therein, but inlovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, Jer_9:23; not in the legs of a man of war, asArama; which are strong to stand his ground, or swift to flee away when hard-pressed; seeAmo_2:14; so the Targum,

"he takes no pleasure in the legs of men that run;''

that are swift to run races, or to flee in battle; to this sense are the notes of Jarchi andKimchi. It seems to intend the infantry in an army, as the cavalry before; and both

intimate that neither horse nor foot are to be trusted in for safety, how pleasing orpromising they may be, since God seeth not as man does: or reference may be had toathletic exercises of horse and foot races, of wrestling, combats, &c. men may delight in,but God does not. What are pleasing to him are exercises of a spiritual kind; such as fleeingto Jesus, the strong tower; running the Christian race, to obtain the incorruptible crown;wrestling against principalities and powers, and such acts of grace as are next mentioned.

4. Henry, “The complacency he takes in his people, Psa_147:10, Psa_147:11. In times whengreat things are doing, and there are great expectations of the success of them, it concernsus to know (since the issue proceeds from the Lord) whom, and what, God will delight tohonour and crown with victory. It is not the strength of armies, but the strength of grace,that God is pleased to own. (1.) ot the strength of armies - not in the cavalry, for he

delighteth not in the strength of the horse, the war-horse, noted for his courage (Job_39:19,.etc.) - nor in the infantry, for he taketh no pleasure in the legs of a man; he does not meanthe swiftness of them for flight, to quit the field, but the steadiness of them for charging, tostand the ground. If one king, making war with another king, goes to God to pray forsuccess, it will not avail him to plead, “Lord, I have a gallant army, the horse and foot ingood order; it is a pity that they should suffer any disgrace;” for that is no argument withGod, Psa_20:7. Jehoshaphat's was much better: Lord, we have no might, 2Ch_20:12. But,(2.) God is pleased to own the strength of grace. A serious and suitable regard to God isthat which is, in the sight of God, of great price in such a case. The Lord accepts and takes

pleasure in those that fear him and that hope in his mercy. Observe, [1.] A holy fear of Godand hope in God not only may consist, but must concur. In the same heart, at the sametime, there must be both a reverence of his majesty and a complacency in his goodness,both a believing dread of his wrath and a believing expectation of his favour; not that wemust hang in suspense between hope and fear, but we must act under the graciousinfluences of hope and fear. Our fear must save our hope from swelling into presumption,and our hope must save our fear from sinking into despair; thus must we take our workbefore us. [2.] We must hope in God's mercy, his general mercy, even when we cannot find aparticular promise to stay ourselves upon. A humble confidence in the goodness of God'snature is very pleasing to him, as that which turns to the glory of that attribute in which hemost glories. Every man of honour loves to be trusted.

5. Jamison, “The advantages afforded, as in war by the strength of the horse or the agilityof man, do not incline God to favor any; but those who fear and, of course, trust Him, willobtain His approbation and aid.

6. Calvin, “:ot in the strength of the horse, etc. After the Psalmist has shown that there isproof of the divine goodness in every part of the world, he takes particular notice that menhave no strength but what is given them from above, and this he adds with the expresspurpose of checking the pride by which almost all men are inflamed, and which leads themto trust in their own strength. The meaning of the passage is, that let man come in thepreparation of his own strength, and with all the assistance's that seem to him mostprevalent, this will only issue in smoke and vanity; nay, that in arrogating the very least tohimself, this will only be a hindrance in the way of the mercy of God, by which alone westand. The strength of the horse is mentioned by synecdoche to denote any kind of

protection. ot that God is displeased with those things in themselves considered which hehas given us as helps, but it is necessary that we be withdrawn from a false confidence inthem, for very commonly when any resource is at hand, we are foolishly intoxicated andlifted up with pride. He opposes the fear of God therefore to the strength both of men andof horses, and places his hope in his mercy, intimating that it is highly incumbent upon usto show our moderation in worshipping God with reverence and holiness, and dependingupon his grace. Hence we learn that he only condemns that strength which would takefrom God the honor due to him.

1 The Hebrew word here is rwnk, kinnor. It is uniformly translated"harp" by Calvin, and also by the translators of our English Bible.But as is supposed by Calmet and others, it more probablycorresponded with the lyre of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. In theSeptuagint it is usually either thrown into the Greek form kinura,cinyra, or rendered kiqara, cithara, one of the various names by whichthe principal varieties of the ancient lyres were distinguished. Andwhere these are not the words by which it is rendered in that version,it is rendered by other names which the Greeks gave to differentforms of the lyre. From this it is evident that the translators of theGreek version believed that rwnk kinnor, denoted the lyre, althoughfrom their translating it by different words, each signifying aparticular variety of that instrument, they were uncertain as to theparticular species of lyre. "The brief intimations in Scripture are infull accordance with this statement; for it is not described as such aninstrument -- large, heavy, and resting on the ground when played --as the word 'harp' suggests to our minds; but as a light portableinstrument, which the player carried in his hand or on his arm, andmight walk or dance the while. In fact, Scripture describes the kinnor

as being used in such a manner and on such occasions as we know thelyre to have been by the ancients, who indeed had not, so far as weknow, any harps large and resting on the ground like ours. We speakonly of the Greeks and Romans, however, for the Egyptians had largestanding harps; from which we shall in a future note take occasion toconclude that such were also known to the Hebrews, while we retainour impression that the lyre is denoted by the kinnor." -- Illustrated

Commentary upon the Bible. The kinnor is an instrument of thehighest antiquity, being one of those two invented by Jubal before theflood. Genesis 4:21 Genesis 4:21 . It was used at an early period on festal occasions, as appears from the next instance in which it ismentioned in Scripture, six hundred years after the deluge, namely, inLaban's words to Jacob, as recorded in Genesis 31:27 Genesis 31:27 . It was also used by the prophets in their sacred music, as we learnfrom the next instance in which it is noticed -- in the time of Samuel, 1 Samuel 10:5 1 Samuel 10:5 . The notes of the kinnor might bemournful, (Isaiah 16:11 Isaiah 16:11 ;) but they were also cheerful, ( Job 21:2 Job 21:2 ; Job 30:31 Job 30:31 ; 1 Samuel 16:23 1 Samuel

16:23 ; Psalm 137:2 Psalm 137:2 .) This musical instrument was constructed of wood, 1 Kings 10:12 1 Kings 10:12 ; and it no doubt was to be found among the Hebrews of different forms and power,and varying in the number of strings. The ancient lyres were eitherplayed with the fingers, or struck with a plectrum, an instrumentwhich appears generally to have consisted of a piece of ivory, polishedwood, or metal, in the form of a quill.

2 "After this clause the Vulgate, the Septuagint, AEthiopic, Arabic, and Anglo-Saxon add,

'and herb for the service of man.' It appears that a hemistich or half line has been lost from

the Hebrew text, which, according to the above version, must have stood as in Psalm 104:14 Psalm 104:14 ." -- Dr. Adam Clarke

7. God is not interested in the strength of what he has created. “He respects characterrather than capacity.” He delights in our recognition of our dependence upon Him.

John Piper, PastorCopyright ©1987, 1996 John Piper

"THE PLEASURE OF GOD I THOSE WHO HOPE I HIS LOVE"

Psalm 147:10-11

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,nor his pleasure in the legs of a man;But the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Up until now we have focused our attention on the pleasures that God has inhimself and in his work.

• He has has pleasure in his Son, the exact representation of his natureand reflection of his glory.

• He has pleasure in his work of creation -- the great sea monsters thathe made to sport in the oceans!

He has pleasure in all the works of providence that show him to be free and sovereign overall the world. He has pleasure in the greatness of his name and the reputation of his glory. He has pleasure in freely choosing a people for himself, and he rejoices over them to dothem good.

And it pleased him to bruise his Son, because in that great act of judgmentthe stormy betrothal of God's two great passions were married -- his passionfor the glory of his name, and the passion of his love toward sinners.

You may recall that our assumption behind all these messages has been the

conviction expressed by Henry Scougal in his book, The Life of God in theSoul of Man, namely, that "The worth and excellency of a soul is to bemeasured by the object of its love." In other words, if we love cheap andworthless things, we reveal how small and cheap our soul is.

The soul is measured by its flights

Some low and others high,

The heart is known by its delights,

And pleasures never lie.

We took as our starting point in this series the persuasion that this is alsotrue of God, not just of man. The worth and excellency of God's soul ismeasured by the objects of his love. And I think we have seen it born outagain and again: the objects of God's love are those things that are of infinitebeauty and worth.

• He loves his Son;

He loves his handiwork in creation; He loves the sovereignty of his providence; He loves the honor of his name; He loves the freedom of grace shown in the election and care and purchase of his people.

So God is a great example for us. He shows us what an excellent soul shouldlove above all else. We should love

the Son of God, and the handiwork of God in creation, and his sovereignty in governing the world, and the honor of his name, and the freedom of his grace.

If we loved them more our souls would be the larger and better for it, and wewould be more conformed to the image of our Maker.

Today marks a turning point in the series, because up 'til now we haven't focused on whatkind of human attitudes and actions God delights in. We have focused first with God's lovefor his own glory. And I believe this order is very important.

We need to see (and those we love in this world need to see!) first and foremost that God isGod

• that he is perfect and complete in himself,

that he is overflowingly happy in the eternal fellowship of the Trinity,

that he does not need us and is not deficient without us.

But rather we are deficient without him; the glory of his fellowship is thestream of living water that we have thirsted for all our life.

Unless we begin with God in this way, when the gospel comes to us we will inevitably putourselves at the center of it. We will feel that our value rather than God's value is thedriving force in the gospel. We will trace the gospel back to God's delight in us instead of

tracing it back to the grace that makes a way for sinners to delight in him.

But the gospel is the good news that God is the all-satisfying end of all our longings, andthat even though he does not need us, and is in fact estranged from us because of our God-belittling sins, he has, in the great love with which he loved us, made a way for sinners todrink at the river of his delights through Jesus Christ. And we will not be enthralled by thisgood news unless we feel that he was not obliged to do this. He was not coerced orconstrained by our value. He is the center of the gospel. The exaltation of his glory is thedriving force of the gospel. The gospel is a gospel of grace! And grace is the will of God tomagnify the worth of God by giving sinners the right to delight in God without obscuringthe glory of God.

And the saints of God love the centrality of God in the gospel:

They love to say with Paul, "From him and through him and to him are all things; to himbe glory for ever and ever" (Rom. 11:36).

They love to make their boast only in the Lord (1 Cor. 1:31).

They love to say that God is the beginning and middle and end in this affair of salvation.

They love to say they were chosen for the glory of his grace (Eph. 1:6), and called fromdarkness to light to declare the wonders of his grace (1 Pet. 2:9), and justified becauseChrist died to vindicate the holiness of God's grace (Rom. 3:25-26), and will one day beswallowed up in life to the praise of the glory of his grace (2 Cor. 5:4).

And so for seven weeks we have focused on the pleasures that God has directly in himselfand in the freedom of his work to make it unmistakable that God is the center of the gospel.We have only hinted at the kind of response from man that would bring God pleasure. Butnow we are ready. ow, Lord willing, we will be able to see why the human responseswhich God demands and enjoys come as good news to sinners and yet keep God at thecenter of his own affections.

If the gospel demands a response from sinners, then the demand itself must be good newsinstead of an added burden, otherwise the gospel would not be gospel. And if the trueBiblical gospel always has God at the center, then the response it demands must magnifyhim and not us.

ow what kind of response can accomplish both of these things: good news for sinners andglory to God?

Our text provides the answer. Psalm 147:10-11,

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,nor his pleasure in the legs of a man;but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Let's begin with verse 11 and ask why God takes pleasure in those who fearhim and hope in his love. Then we will turn to verse 10 and refine our answer

by asking why God does not delight in the strength of the horse and the legsof a man.

First of all let me ask you this: does it strike you as strange that we should be encouraged tofear and hope at the same time and in the same person? "The Lord takes pleasure in thosewho fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love." Do you hope in the one you fear andfear the one you hope in?

It's usually the other way around: if we fear a person we hope that someone else will comeand help us. But here we are supposed to fear the one we hope in and hope in the one wefear. What does this mean?

I think it means that we should let the experience of hope penetrate and transform theexperience of fear, and let the experience of fear penetrate and transform the experience ofhope. In other words, the kind of fear that we should have toward God is whatever is left offear when we have a sure hope in the midst of it.

Suppose you were exploring an unknown glacier in the north of Greenland in the dead ofwinter. Just as you reach a sheer cliff with a spectacular view of miles and miles of jaggedice and snow mountains a terrible storm breaks in. The wind is so strong that the fear risesthat it might blow you and your party right over the cliff. But in the midst of it youdiscover a cleft in the ice where you can hide. Here you feel secure but the awesome mightof the storm rages on and you watch it with a kind of trembling pleasure as it surges outacross the distant glaciers.

At first there was the fear that this terrible storm and awesome terrain might claim yourlife. But then you found a refuge and gained the hope that you would be safe. But noteverything in the feeling called fear vanished. Only the the life-threatening part. Thereremained the trembling, the awe, the wonder, the feeling that you would never want totangle with such a storm or be the adversary of such a power.

And so it is with God. Verses 16-17 says, "He gives snow like wool; he scatters hoarfrostlike ashes. He casts forth his ice like morsels; who can stand before his cold?" The cold ofGod is a fearful thing -- who can stand against it! And verses 4-5 point in the same power ofGod in nature: "He determines the number of the stars, he gives to all of them their names.Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure."

In other words, God's greatness is greater than the universe of stars and his power isbehind the unendurable cold of arctic storms. Yet he cups his hand around us and says,take refuge in my love and let the terrors of my power become the awesome fireworks ofyour happy night sky. The fear of God is what is left of the storm when you have a safeplace to watch it right in the middle of it.

And in that place of refuge you say to yourself, "This is amazing, this is terrible, this isincredible power; O the thrill of being here in the center of the awful power of God, yetprotected by God himself! O what a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living Godwithout hope, without a Savior! Better to have a millstone tied around my neck and bethrown into the depths of the sea than to offend against this God! What a wonderfulprivilege to know the favor of this God in the midst of his power!"

And so we get an idea of how we feel both hope and fear at the same time. Hope turns fearinto a happy trembling and peaceful wonder; and fear takes everything trivial out of hopeand makes it serious. The terrors of God make the pleasures of his people intense. Thefireside fellowship is all the sweeter when the storm is howling outside the cottage.

ow why does God delight in those who experience him in this way -- in people who fearhim and hope in his love?

Surely it is because our fear reflects the greatness of his power and our hope reflects thebounty of his grace. God delights in those responses which mirror his magnificence.

This is just what we would have expected from a God who is all-sufficient in himself andhas no need of us -- a God:

• who will never give up the glory of being the fountain of all joy,

who will never surrender the honor of being the source of all safety,

who will never abdicate the throne of sovereign grace.

God has pleasure in those who hope in his love because that hope highlightsthe freedom of his grace. When I cry out, "God is my only hope, my rock, myrefuge!", I am turning from myself and calling all attention to the boundlessresources of God.

Do you remember the question we asked a few moments ago: what kind of response canGod demand from us so that the demand gives good news to us and glory to him? This isthe answer: the demand to hope in his love.

As a sinner with no righteousness of your own, standing before a self-sufficient and andholy God, what command would you rather hear than this: "Hope in my love!" If we onlyknew it every one of us is stranded on an ice face in Greenland, and the wind is blowingfiercely. Our position is so precarious that if we even inhale too deeply our weight will shiftand we will plunge to our death. God comes to us and says in that moment, "I will saveyou, and protect you in the storm. But there is a condition." Your heart sinks. Your face isflat against the ice. Your fingernails are dug in. You can feel yourself giving way. Youknow that if you even move your lips you're going to fall. You know that there is nothingyou can do for God!

Then he speaks the gospel command: my requirement is that you hope in me. Is this notgood news this morning? What could be easier than to hope in God when all else is givingway? And that is all he requires. That's the gospel.

But it is not only good news for us sinners. It is also the glory of God to make only thisdemand upon us. Why? Because when you hope in God you show,

• that he is strong and you are weak;

that he is rich and you are poor;

that he is full and you and you are empty.

When you hope in God you show that you are the one who has needs, notGod (Psalm 50:10-15; 71:4-6,14).

• You are the patient, he is the doctor.

You are the thirsty deer, he is the overflowing spring.

You are the lost sheep, he is the good shepherd.

The beauty of the gospel is that in one simple demand ("Put your hope in thelove of God!") we hear good news and God gets the glory. And that is whyGod takes pleasure in those who hope in his love -- because in this simple actof hope his grace is glorified and sinners are saved. This is the command ofthe gospel that keeps God at the center -- the center of his affections andours.

ow let us ask why God does not take pleasure in horses and legs. Verse 10:

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,nor his pleasure in the legs of a man.

The point here is not that strong horses and strong legs are bad. God madethem. He rejoices in the strength and freedom of mighty horses. He asks Job,

Do you give the horse his might?Do you clothe his neck with strength?Do you make him leap like the locust?. . .He paws in the valley, and exults in his strength;He goes out to meet the weapons. He laughs at fear, and is not dismayed;he does not turn back from the sword. . .he cannot stand still at the sound of the trumpet.When the trumpet sounds, he says, "Aha!"He smells the battle from afar,the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.

Job 39:19-25

o, the point is not that this glorious animal is bad. The point is that in theday of battle men put their hope in horses instead of putting their hope inGod. But Proverbs 21:31 says, "The horse is made ready for the day ofbattle, but the victory belongs to the Lord." Therefore Psalm 20:7 says,"Some boast in chariots, and some in horses; but we boast of the name of thLord our God."

God is not displeased with horses' strength and human legs. He is displeased with thosewho hope in their horses and their legs. He is displeased with people who put their hope inmissiles or in make-up, in tanks or tans, in bombs or body-building. God takes no pleasurein corporate efficiency or balanced budgets or welfare systems or new vaccines oreducation or eloquence or artistic excellence or legal processes when these things are thetreasure in which we hope or the achievement in which we boast.

Why? Because when we put our hope in horses and legs, horses and legs get the glory, notGod. And we are lost not saved.

So I urge you this morning, for the sake of your soul and for the glory of God: bank yourhope on the power and love of God, not on yourself or on anything you can achieve.

For the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,in those who hope in his steadfast love.

8. SPURGEO Treasury of David

Verse 10. He delighteth not in the strength of the horse. ot to great and strong animals doththe Creator in any measure direct his special thought; but in lesser living things he hasequal pleasure. If man could act the Creator's part, he would take peculiar delight inproducing noble quadrupeds like horses, whose strength and speed would reflect honourupon their maker; but Jehovah has no such feeling; lie cares as much for helpless birds inthe nest as for the war horse in the pride of its power. He taketh not pleasure in the legs of a

man. These are the athlete's glory, but God hath no pleasure in them. ot the capacities ofthe creature, but rather its weakness and necessity, win the regard of our God. Monarchstrust in their cavalry and infantry; but the King of kings exults not in the hosts of hiscreatures as though they could lend power to him. Physical or material greatness andpower are of no account with Jehovah; he has respect to other and more precious qualities.Men who boast in fight the valour of gigantic might, will not find themselves the favouritesof God: though earthly princes may feast their eyes upon their Joabs and their Abners,their Abishais and Asahels, the Lord of hosts has no pleasure in mere bone and muscle.Sinews and thews are of small account, either in horses or in men, with Him who is a spirit,and delights most in spiritual things. The expression of the text may be viewed as includingall creature power, even of a mental or moral kind. God does not take pleasure in usbecause of our attainments, or potentialities: he respects character rather than capacity.

Verse 10. The two clauses of this verse are probably intended to describe cavalry andinfantry, as forming the military strength of nations. It is not to those who trust in suchresources that Jehovah shows favour, but to those who rely on his protection (Ps 147:11).—Annotated Paragraph Bible.

Verses 10-11. When a sinner is brought upon his knees, and becomes a suppliant, when ashe is laid low by affliction, so he lieth low in prayer and supplication, then the Lord will befavourable to him, and show his delight in him. The Lord delighteth not in the strength of

the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. o man is favoured by God because ofhis outward favour, because he hath a beautiful face, or strong, clean limbs; yea, not onlyhath the Lord no pleasure in any man's legs, but not in any man's brains, how reachingsoever, not in any man's wit how quick soever, nor in any man's judgment how deepsoever, nor in any man's tongue how eloquent or well spoken soever; but The Lord taketh

pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy, in those that walk humblywith him, and call upon him...All the beauties and rarities both of persons and things aredull and flat, yea, wearisome and loathsome to God, in comparison of a gracious, honest,

humble soul. Princes have their favourites (Job 33:26); they are favourable to some abovemany, either because they are beautiful and goodly persons, or because they are men ofexcellent speech, prudence and deportment. All godly men are God's favourites; he isfavourable to them not only above many men in the world, but above all the men of thisworld, who have their portion in this life; and he therefore favours them, because they arethe purchase of his Son and the workmanship of his Spirit, convincing them of, andhumbling them for, their sins, as also creating them after God in righteousness and trueholiness. Such shall be his favourites.—Joseph Caryl.

11. the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

1. Barnes, “The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him - In those who truly worshiphim, however humble, poor, and unknown to people they may be; however unostentatious,retired, unnoticed may be their worship. ot in the “pride, pomp, and circumstance ofwar” is his pleasure; not in the march of armies; not in the valor of the battlefield; not inscenes where “the garments of the warrior are rolled in blood,” but in the closet, when thedevout child of God prays; in the family, when the group bend before Him in solemndevotion; in the assembly - quiet, serious, calm - when his friends are gathered together forprayer and praise; in the heart that truly loves, reverences, adores Him.

In those that hope in his mercy - It is a pleasure to him to have the guilty, the feeble, theundeserving hope in Him - trust in Him - seek Him.

2. Clarke, “The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him - That are truly religious.In those that hope is his mercy - Who are just beginning to seek the salvation of their

souls. Even the cry of the penitent is pleasing in the ear of the Lord. With this verse thehundred and forty-sixth Psalm ends in all the Versions, except the Chaldee. And thehundred and forty-seventh commences with the Psa_147:12. I believe these to be twodistinct Psalms. The subjects of them are not exactly the same, though something similar;and they plainly refer to different periods.

3. Gill, “The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him,.... With a filial and godly fear;that serve and worship him, privately and publicly, with reverence and love: as, appears bythe goodness he lays up for them; the good things he communicates to them; the discoveriesof his love, covenant, and grace, they have from him; the guard he sets about them; his eyeof providence and grace over them; and his heart full of love, pity, and compassion tothem; see Psa_33:18;

in those that hope in his mercy; not general, but special; not in the absolute mercy of God,but as displayed in Christ; and great encouragement there is to hope in it, from the plentyof it in his heart, from the instances of it among men, and from the blessings of grace andsalvation that spring from it: and in such the Lord takes pleasure; hope is his own grace,and mercy is his delight; and he is pleased with those that exercise hope upon it: not thatthe graces of fear and hope, and the exercise of them, are the cause and motives of God'sdelight in his people, which, as they were considered in Christ, was before the world was, orthose graces were in them; but these describe and point out the persons who are openly andmanifestly the objects of his delight and pleasure. Plutarch (r), an, Heathen writer, seemsto have been acquainted with this and Psa_147:10, and to refer to them, when he says,

"it is somewhere said, that God is not a lover of horses, nor of birds, but of men, anddesires to dwell with those that are eminently good; nor does he refuse nor despise thefamiliar converse of a man divine and wise.''

4. SPURGEO Treaury of David

Verse 11. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him in those that hope in his mercy.

While the bodily powers give no content to God, spiritual qualities are his delight. He caresmost for those emotions which centre in himself: the fear which he approves is fear of him,and the hope which he accepts is hope in his mercy. It is a striking thought that God shouldnot only be at peace with some kinds of men, but even find a solace and a joy in theircompany. Oh! the matchless condescension of the Lord, that his greatness should takepleasure in the insignificant creatures of his hand. Who are these favoured men in whomJehovah takes pleasure? Some of them are the least in his family, who have never risenbeyond hoping and fearing. Others of them are more fully developed, but still they exhibita blended character composed of fear and hope: they fear God with holy awe and filialreverence, and they also hope for forgiveness and blessedness because of the divine mercy.As a father takes pleasure in his own children, so doth the Lord solace himself in his ownbeloved ones, whose marks of new birth are fear and hope. They fear, for they are sinners;they hope; for God is merciful. They fear him, for he is great; they hope in him, for he isgood. Their fear sobers their hope; their hope brightens their fear: God takes pleasure inthem both in their trembling and in their rejoicing. Is there not rich cause for praise in thisspecial feature of the divine character? After all, it is a poor nature which is delighted withbrute force; it is a diviner thing to take pleasure in the holy character of those around us.As men may be known by the nature of the things which give them pleasure, so is the Lordknown by the blessed fact that he taketh pleasure in the righteous, even though thatrighteousness is as yet in its initial stage of fear and hope.

Verse 11. Them that fear him, those that hope in his mercy. Patience and fear are the fencesof hope. There is a beautiful relation between hope and fear. The two are linked in thisverse. They are like the cork in a fisherman's net, which keeps it from sinking, and thelead, which prevents it from floating. Hope without fear is in danger of being too sanguine;fear without hope would soon become desponding.—George Seaton Bowes, in "In Prospect

of Sunday"; 1880.

Verse 11. Them that fear him, those that hope in his mercy. A sincere Christian is known byboth these; a fear of God, or a constant obedience to his commands, and an affiance, trust,and dependence upon his mercies. Oh, how sweetly are both these coupled, a uniformsincere obedience to him, and an unshaken constant reliance on his mercy and goodness!The whole perfection of the Christian life is comprised in these two—believing God andfearing him, trusting in his mercy and fearing his name; the one maketh us careful inavoiding sin, the other diligent to follow after righteousness; the one is a bridle from sinand temptations, the other a spur to our duties. Fear is our curb, and hope our motive andencouragement; the one respects our duty, and the other our comfort; the one allayeth theother. God is so to be feared, as also to be trusted; so to be trusted, as also to be feared; andas we must not suffer our fear to degenerate into legal bondage, but hope in his mercy, soour trust must not degenerate into carnal sloth and wantonness, but so hope in his word asto fear his name. Well, then, such as both believe in God and fear to offend him are theonly men who are acceptable to God and his people. God will take pleasure in them, andthey take pleasure in one another.—Thomas Manton.

Verse 11. Fear and Hope are the great vincula of Old Testament theology, bracketing andincluding in their meaning all its ideas.—Thomas Le Blanc.

Verse 11. Fear and hope are passions of the mind so contrary the one to the other, that withregard to the same object, it is strange they should meet in the same laudable character; yethere we see they do so, and it is the praise of the same persons, that they both fear God, andhope in him. Whence we may gather this doctrine: That in every concern that lies upon ourhearts, we should still endeavour to keep the balance even between hope and fear. Weknow how much the health of the body depends upon a due temperament of the humours,such as preserves any one from being predominant above the rest; and how much thesafety and peace of the nations result from a due balance of trade and power, that no onegrow too great for its neighbours; and so necessary is it to the health and welfare of oursouls, that there be a due proportion maintained between their powers and passions, andthat the one may always be a check upon the other, to keep it from running into extremes;as in these affections mentioned in the text. A holy fear of God must be a check upon ourhope, to keep that from swelling into presumption; and a pious hope in God must be acheck upon our fear, to keep that from sinking into despondency. This balance must, I say,by a wise and steady hand, be kept even in every concern that lies upon our hearts, andthat we have thoughts about. I shall enumerate those that are of the greatest importance.We must keep up both hope and fear. 1. As to the concerns of our souls, and our spiritualand eternal state. 2. As to our outward concerns, relating to the body and the life that nowis. 3. As to the public concerns of the church of God, and our own land and nation. Inreference to each of these, we must always study and strive to support that affection,whether it be hope or fear, which the present temper of our minds and circumstances ofour case make necessary to preserve us from an extreme.—Matthew Henry.

5. COLI COOMBS

HOW TO PLEASE GOD

A. FEAR THE LORD & B. HOPE I THE LORD

Psalm 147:11The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

It is an impressive thought that God should, not only be at peace with some people, but Heeven finds pleasure in their company! Who are these favoured people? They are the onesdescribed in our text.Let us look more closely at their description.

A. THEY FEAR THE LORDThe LORD delights in those who fear himIt is a fear conjoined with love and hope, and is therefore not a slavish dread, but ratherfilial reverence. [Easton’s Dictionary]

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.

1. THE PURITY OF THIS FEARPsalm 19:9 The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring for ever. (clean AV)‘Unmixed with alloys’. = undivided loyaltiesThe doctrine of truth is here described by its spiritual effect, viz., inward piety, or the fearof the Lord; this is clean in itself, and cleanses out the love of sin, sanctifying the heart inwhich it reigns (Spurgeon)Matthew 6:24 " o one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other, orbe devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.John 17:17 Sanctify {Greek hagiazo (set apart for sacred use or make holy)} them by thetruth; your word is truth.

2. THE PRIVILEGE OF THIS FEARPsalm 25:14 The LORD confides in those who fear him;John 15:15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’sbusiness. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father Ihave made known to you.

Ephesians 1:9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his goodpleasure, which he purposed in Christ,Ephesians 1:18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that youmay know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in thesaints.

3. THE PROTECTIO OF THIS FEARPsalm 60:4 But you have raised a banner for those who honour you [fear You]—a rallyingpoint in the face of attack [ LT]

The Banner was a place of1. Of unity. This people, who were lately divided and under several banners, are nowgathered together and united under one banner,- the Lord‘s. 2. Of battle. They have been given an army and power to oppose the enemies. 3. Of triumph. We have not lost our banner, but gained theirs, and brought it away intriumph: [based on Spurgeon]

II Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthenthose whose hearts are fully committed to himFor the eyes of the Lord go this way and that, through all the earth, letting it be seen thathe is the strong support of those whose hearts are true to him [BBE]

4. THE PARTICIPATIO OF THIS FEAR

a. ITS FU CTIO Psalm 2:11 Serve the LORD with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling [ LT]let reverence and humility be mingled with service. [Spurgeon]

Heb 12:28 & 29 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let usbe thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is aconsuming fire.

b. ITS FELLOWSHIPMalachi 3:16 those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listenedand heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those whofeared the LORD and honoured his nameLuke 24:15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself cameup and walked along with them;1Jo 1:3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may havefellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.Fellowshipkoinwnia koinonia koy-nohn-ee’-ah; partnership, i.e. (literally) participation, or (social)intercourse, or (pecuniary) benefaction:— (to) communicate(-ation), communion,(contri-)distribution, fellowship.

They fear, for they are sinners; they hope; for God is merciful. They fear him, for he is great; they hope in him, for he is good. Their fear sobers their hope; their hope brightens their fear: God takes pleasure in them both in their trembling and in their rejoicing. [Spurgeon]There is a beautiful relation between hope and fear. The two are linked in this verse. Theyare like the cork in a fisherman’s net, which keeps it from sinking, and the lead, whichprevents it from floating. Hope without fear is in danger of being too cheerful; fear withouthope would soon become despondent. George Seaton Bowes

B. THEY HOPE I THE LORDPsalm 147:11The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.A sincere Christian is known by both these; a fear of God, or a constant obedience to hiscommands, and an affiance, trust, and dependence upon his mercies. Oh, how sweetly areboth these coupled, a uniform sincere obedience to him, and an unshaken constant relianceon his mercy and goodness! The whole perfection of the Christian life is comprised in thesetwo—believing God and fearing him, trusting in his mercy and fearing his name; the onemaketh us careful in avoiding sin, the other diligent to follow after righteousness; the one isa bridle from sin and temptations, the other a spur to our duties. Fear is our curb, andhope our motive and encouragement; the one respects our duty, and the other our comfort;the one allayeth the other. God is so to be feared, as also to be trusted; so to be trusted, asalso to be feared; and as we must not suffer our fear to degenerate into legal bondage, buthope in his mercy, so our trust must not degenerate into carnal sloth and wantonness, butso hope in his word as to fear his name. Well, then, such as both believe in God and fear tooffend him are the only men who are acceptable to God and his people. God will takepleasure in them, and they take pleasure in one another. Thomas Manton.

The LORD delights in those . . . . who put their hope in his unfailing love.A holy fear of God must be a check upon our hope, to keep that from swelling intopresumption; and a pious hope in God must be a check upon our fear, to keep that fromsinking into despondency. This balance must, I say, by a wise and steady hand, be kepteven in every concern that lies upon our hearts, and that we have thoughts about[Spurgeon}

{elpiv elpis el-pece’; from a primary elpw elpo (to anticipate, usually with pleasure); expectation or confidence:— faith, hope.}

1. THE SOURCE OF THIS HOPE

a. THE LORDLamentations 3:24 The Lord is my heritage; and because of this I will have hope in him.[BBE]

umbers 18:20 The LORD said to Aaron, "I am your share and your inheritance amongthe Israelites.To have God for our portion is the one only foundation of hope. [J.F.B.]Ro 15:13 ow may the God of hope make you full of joy and peace through faith, so thatall hope may be yours in the power of the Holy Spirit. (BBE)

b. THE WORD OF GODPsalm 119:49 Remember your word to your servant, for you have given me hope.Psalm 130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.Habakkuk 2:3 But these things I plan won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely,

the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for itwill surely take place. It will not be delayed. [ LT]

2. THE STRE GTH OF THIS HOPE

a. THE A TIDOTE TO WEAK ESSPsalm 119:81 My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope inyour word

b. THE ACTIO FOR FEARPsalm 31:24 Put away fear and let your heart be strong, all you whose hope is in the Lord.[BBE]

3. THE SECURITY OF THIS HOPE

a. THE SHELTER OF THE LORDPsalm 119:114 You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.

b. THE SEEI G OF THE LORDPsalm 33:18 the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in hisunfailing love.

4. THE SURETY OF THIS HOPE

a. A COMMA DED ACTIO Psalm 131:3 3 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD—now and always. [ LT]

b. A CERTAI A SWERPsalm 38:15 I wait for you, O LORD; you will answer, O Lord my God.

c. A COMMITTED APPLICATIO Psalm 71:14 as for me, I shall always have hope; I will praise you more and more

12. Extol the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion,

1. Barnes, “Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem ... - In addition to this general praise in which allmay unite, there are special reasons why Jerusalem and its inhabitants should praise God:just as now, in addition to the general reasons pertaining to all people why they shouldpraise God, there are special reasons why Christians - why his redeemed people - should do

it. What those reasons, as pertaining to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, were, is specified inthe following verses.

2. Gill, “Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem,.... The inhabitants of it, as Kimchi; not Jerusalem ina literal sense, for this respects future time, as Aben Ezra; the world to come, the times ofthe Messiah: and intends the spiritual Jerusalem, as Arama; that which is free, the motherof us all; the Gospel church, and the members of it; which have great reason to praise theLord, for their special blessings and peculiar privileges; see Gal_4:26;

praise thy God, O Zion; not the house and family of David, as R. Obadiah; nor the priestsand Levites in the temple, as others; but the same as before, the church and people of God;the Mount Zion God has loved and chose for his habitation; the city of our solemnities inGospel times; the perfection of beauty and joy of the whole earth; whose God and King isChrist; and whom Zion and all her children should praise, being her incarnate God,Immanuel, God manifest in the flesh. With this verse, the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin,Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, begin the psalm.

4. Henry, “Jerusalem, and Zion, the holy city, the holy hill, are here called upon to praise

God, Psa_147:12. For where should praise be offered up to God but where his altar is?Where may we expect that glory should be given to him but in the beauty of holiness? Letthe inhabitants of Jerusalem praise the Lord in their own houses; let the priests andLevites, who attend in Zion, the city of their solemnities, in a special manner praise theLord. They have more cause to do it than others, and they lie under greater obligations todo it than others; for it is their business, it is their profession. “Praise thy God, O Zion! he isthine, and therefore thou art bound to praise him; his being thine includes all happiness, sothat thou canst never want matter for praise.” Jerusalem and Zion must praise God,

5. K&D 12-20. “In the lxx this strophe is a Psalm (Lauda Jerusalem) of itself. The call goesforth to the church again on the soil of the land of promise assembled round aboutJerusalem. The holy city has again risen out of its ruins; it now once more has gates whichcan stand open in the broad daylight, and can be closed and bolted when the darknesscomes on for the security of the municipality that is only just growing into power ( eh_7:1-4). The blessing of God again rests upon the children of the sacred metropolis. Its territory,which has experienced all the sufferings of war, and formerly resounded with the tumult ofarms and cries of woe and destruction, God has now, from being an arena of conflict, madeinto peace (the accusative of the effect, and therefore different from Isa_60:17); and sincethe land can now again be cultivated in peace, the ancient promise (Ps 81:17) is fulfilled,that God would feed His people, if they would only obey Him, with the fat of wheat. TheGod of Israel is the almighty Governor of nature. It is He who sends His fiat (אמרתו afterthe manner of the ויאמר of the history of creation, cf. Psa_33:9) earthwards (ארץ, theaccusative of the direction). The word is His messenger (vid., on Psa_107:20), עד־מהרה, i.e.,it runs as swiftly as possible, viz., in order to execute the errand on which it is sent. He it iswho sends down snow-flakes like flocks of wool, so that the fields are covered with snow aswith a white-woollen warming covering.

( ote: Bochart in his Hierozoicon on this passage compares an observation ofEustathius on Dionysius Periegetes: τὴν χιόνα ἐριῶδες ὕδωρ ἀστείως οἱ παλαιοὶ

ἐκάλουν.)

He scatters hoar-frost (כפור from כפר, to cover over with the fine frozen dew or mist asthough they were powdered with ashes that the wind had blown about. Another time Hecasts His ice

( ote: lxx (Italic, Vulgate) κρύσταλλον, i.e., ice, from the root κρυ, to freeze, tocongeal (Jerome glaciem). Quid est crystallum? asks Augustine, and replies: :ix est

glacie durata per multos annos ita ut a sole vel igne acile dissolvi non possit.)

,down like morsels (קרח from קרחו ,or according to another reading ;קרח from קרחו )fragments, כפתים, viz., as hail-stones, or as sleet. The question: before His cold - who canstand? is formed as in ah_1:6, cf. Psa_130:3. It further comes to pass that God sends forthHis word and causes them (snow, hoar-frost, and ice) to melt away: He makes His thawingwind blow, waters flow; i.e., as soon as the one comes about, the other also takes placeforthwith. This God now, who rules all things by His word and moulds all things accordingto His will, is the God of the revelation pertaining to the history of salvation, which is cometo Israel, and as the bearer of which Israel takes the place of honour among the nations,Deu_4:7., 32-34. Since the poet says מגיד and not הגיד, he is thinking not only of the Tôra,but also of prophecy as the continuous self-attestation of God, the Lawgiver. The Kerî דבריו,occasioned by the plurals of the parallel member of the verse, gives an unlimited indistinctidea. We must keep to דברו, with the lxx, Aquila, Theodotion, the Quinta, Sexta, andJerome. The word, which is the medium of God's cosmical rule, is gone forth as a word ofsalvation to Israel, and, unfolding itself in statutes and judgments, has raised Israel to alegal state founded upon a positive divine law or judgment such as no Gentile nationpossesses. The Hallelujah does not exult over the fact that these other nations are notacquainted with any such positive divine law, but (cf. Deu_4:7., Baruch 4:4) over the factthat Israel is put into possession of such a law. It is frequently attested elsewhere that thispossession of Israel is only meant to be a means of making salvation a common property ofthe world at large.

6. Calvin, “Celebrate Jehovah, O Jerusalem! Having spoken in general of the mercies ofGod, he again addresses his discourse to the Lord's people, who alone, as we haveremarked already, can appreciate them, calling upon them to recognize with thanksgivingthe blessings which others riot upon without acknowledgment. Under the name ofJerusalem, he comprises the whole Church, for in that place the faithful then held theirreligious assemblies, and flowed together as it were to the standard of the Lord. Althoughhe will take occasion afterwards again to speak of the government of the world at large, hehere commemorates the goodness of God as manifested to his own people, in protecting hisown Church, bountifully cherishing it, enriching it abundantly with all blessings, andpreserving it in peace and safety from all harm. When he says that the bars of the gates are

strengthened by God, he means that the holy city was perfectly guarded by him from all fearof hostile attack. To the same effect is the other expression which comes after -- that all its

bounds were made peace. Enemies were under divine restraint so as to cause no disturbanceor confusions. ot that the Church is always in a state of peace throughout its whole extent,and exempt from attack, but that God in a visible manner stretches forth his hand to repelthese assaults, and it can securely survey the whole array of its enemies. A more extensive

meaning indeed may be given to the term peace, which is often taken to signify a happy andprosperous condition. But as mention is made of bounds, the former sense seems mostappropriate. The blessing of God enjoyed within is next spoken of, consisting in this, thatthe citizens dwell prosperously and happily in it, and are fed bountifully, even to satiety;which does not mean that the children of God always wallow in abundance. This might bethe means of corrupting them, prone as our nature is to wantonness; but it suggests thatthey recognize the liberality of God in their daily food more clearly than others who wantfaith, and whom either abundance renders blind, or poverty vexes with deplorable anxiety,or covetousness inflames with a desire that never can be satisfied. God's paternal favor wasshown more particularly to our fathers under the law in the abundance of temporalprovision, it being necessary to lead them forward to something higher by what waselementary.

7. SPURGEO , Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion. How the poet insistsupon praise: he cries praise, praise, as if it were the most important of all duties. A peculiarpeople should render peculiar praise. The city of peace should be the city of praise; and thetemple of the covenant God should resound with his glories. If nowhere else, yet certainlyin Zion there should be joyful adoration of Zion's God. ote, that we are to praise the Lordin our own houses in Jerusalem as well as in his own house in Zion. The holy city surroundsthe holy hill, and both are dedicated to the holy God, therefore both should ring withhallelujahs.

8. Warren Wiersbe, “I wonder if the Old Testament people of Israel realized howprivileged they were. This is what the psalmist addresses in today's passage. He's telling theJewish people to praise the Lord because of all He had done for them. "For He hasstrengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your children within you" (v. 13). Hegave peace in their borders. He fed them. He gave them His Word and His Law. He gavethem land. "He has not dealt thus with any nation; and as for His judgments, they have notknown them" (v. 20). God deposited with Israel the precious treasure of His Word. otice what the psalmist says about the Word of God. Verse 15 tells us that God's Wordruns: "He sends out His command to the earth; His word runs very swiftly." When Godspeaks, that Word goes out like a rapidly running messenger and accomplishes Hispurposes. God runs the universe by His Word. He decrees things, and they happen.

God's Word also melts obstacles. "He sends out His word and melts them" (v. 18). God'sWord can melt the cold, hard heart. Are you facing an impossible situation? The Word ofGod can melt any bars or walls and open the way for you.

Finally, God's Word blesses. "He declares His word to Jacob, His statutes and Hisjudgments to Israel.... Praise the Lord!" (vv. 19,20). Read the Word of God. It's a greattreasure that, when invested in your life, bears fruit.God's Word runs and accomplishesHis will. It melts and opens the way. And it blesses all who will receive it, obey it and trustit. God desires that you spend time daily appropriating the riches of His Word. Do you

invest God's Word in your life?

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13. for he strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you.

1. Barnes, “For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates - He has made thee safe andsecure - as if he had given additional strength to the fastenings of the gates of the city.Cities were surrounded by walls. They were entered through gates. Those gates werefastened by bars passed across them, to which the gates were secured. The language heremight be applicable to any period, but it is probable that there is particular reference toJerusalem as made strong in rebuilding it after the return from Babylon.

He hath blessed thy children within thee - The inhabitants, by giving them safety andpeace.

2. Clarke, “He hath strengthened the bars of thy gates - He has enabled thee to completethe walls of Jerusalem. From the former part of the Psalm it appears the walls were then toprogress; from this part, they appear to be completed, and provisions to be brought intothe city, to support its inhabitants. The gates were set up and well secured by bars, so thatthe grain, etc., was in safety.

3. Gill, “For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates,.... Of Jerusalem, of Zion the churchof God. Gates are for the letting in of persons into the city of our God; which are Christ,faith in him, and a profession of it; see Isa_26:1, "bars" are for the security of those that,are in it, and to keep out the enemy: and these, "strengthened", denote the utmost safety ofthe true members of Christ and his church; who have nothing to fear from their spiritualenemies, sin, law, Satan, the world, death, and hell: God is on their side; Christ is themunition of rocks unto them the Holy Spirit is in them, who is greater than he that is in theworld; and angels are guards about them; all which is matter of praise, and a sufficientreason for it;

he hath blessed thy children within thee; multiplied them and made them fruitful,increased the number of them; even the spiritual children of the church, brought forth toChrist by her; born in her, through the ministry of the Gospel; and brought up by her,with the ordinances of it. These in the first times of the Gospel were very numerous, andwill be so again in the latter day, like the drops of the morning dew; and are and will beblessed with all spiritual blessings, with pardoning, justifying, adopting, and sanctifying

grace, and with eternal life; for which the Lord's name is to be praised.

4. Henry, “For the prosperity and flourishing state of their civil interests, Psa_147:13,Psa_147:14. 1. For their common safety. They had gates, and kept their gates barred intimes of danger; but that would not have been an effectual security to them if God had notstrengthened the bars of their gates and fortified their fortifications. The most probablemeans we can devise for our own preservation will not answer the end, unless God give hisblessing with them; we must therefore in the careful and diligent use of those means,depend upon him for that blessing, and attribute the undisturbed repose of our land moreto the wall of fire than to the wall of water round about us, Zec_2:5. 2. For the increase oftheir people. This strengthens the bars of the gates as much as any thing: He hath blessed

thy children within thee, with that first and great blessing, Be fruitful, and multiply, and

replenish the land. It is a comfort to parents to see their children blessed of the Lord(Isa_61:9), and a comfort to the generation that is going off to see the rising generationnumerous and hopeful, for which blessing God must be blessed. 3. For the publictranquillity, that they were delivered from the terrors and desolations of war: He makes

peace in thy borders, by putting an end to the wars that were, and preventing the wars thatwere threatened and feared. He makes peace within thy borders, that is, in all parts of thecountry, by composing differences among neighbours, that there may be no intestine broilsand animosities, and upon thy borders, that they may not be attacked by invasions fromabroad. If there be trouble any where, it is in the borders, the marches of a country; thefrontier-towns lie most exposed, so that, if there be peace in the borders, there is auniversal peace, a mercy we can never be sufficiently thankful for. 4. For great plenty, thecommon effect of peace: He filleth thee with the finest of the wheat - wheat, the mostvaluable grain, the fat, the finest of that, and a fulness thereof. What would they more?Canaan abounded with the best wheat (Deu_32:14) and exported it to the countries abroad,as appears, Eze_27:17. The land of Israel was not enriched with precious stones nor spices,but with the finest of the wheat, with bread, which strengthens man's heart. This made itthe glory of all lands, and for this God was praised in Zion.

II. For the wonderful instances of his power in the weather, particularly the winter-weather. He that protects Zion and Jerusalem is that God of power from whom all thepowers of nature are derived and on whom they depend, and who produces all the changesof the seasons, which, if they were not common, would astonish us.

6. SPURGEO Treasury of David

Verse 13. For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates. Her fortifications were finished,even to the fastenings of the gates, and God had made all sound and strong, even to herbolts and bars: thus her security against invading foes was guaranteed. This is no smallmercy. Oh, that our churches were thus preserved from all false doctrine and unholyliving! This must be the Lord's doing; and where he has wrought it his name is greatly tobe praised. Modern libertines would tear down all gates and abolish all bars; but so do notwe, because of the fear of the Lord. He hath blessed thy children within thee. Internalhappiness is as truly the Lord's gift as external security. When the Lord blesses "thy sonsin the midst of thee", thou art, O Zion, filled with a happy, united, zealous, prosperous,holy people, who dwell in communion with God, and enter into the joy of their Lord. WhenGod makes thy walls salvation thy gates must be praise. It would little avail to fortify a

wretched, starving city; but when the walls are strengthened, it is a still greater joy to seethat the inhabitants are blessed with all good gifts. How much our churches need a presentand abiding benediction.

Verses 13-14. The Psalmist recites four arguments from which he would have Zion singpraises: 1. Security and defence. 2. Benediction. 3. Peace. 4. Sustenance or provision.

1. Security. Jerusalem is a city secure, being defended by God: For he hath strengthened the

bars of thy gates. Gates and bars do well to a city, but then only is the city secure when Godmakes them strong. The true munition of a city is God's defence of it. Arms, laws, wealth,etc., are the bars, but God must put strength into them.

2. Benediction. Jerusalem is a happy city, for he hath blessed thy children, within, thee, thykings, princes, magistrates, etc., with wisdom, piety, etc.

3. Peace. Jerusalem is a peaceable city. He maketh peace in thy borders, the very nameintimates so much; for Jerusalem interpreted is visio pacis—Vision of peace.

4. Abundance. Jerusalem is a city provided by God with necessary food and provision; forHe filleth thee with the finest of the wheat.—William :icholson.

14. He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

1. Barnes, “He maketh peace in thy borders - Margin, he maketh thy border peace. Theword border here refers to a boundary, and stands for all the domain or territory includedwithin the boundaries of a country. The idea is that peace prevailed throughout the land.

And filleth thee with the finest of the wheat - Margin, as in Hebrew, fat of wheat.Literally, “He satisfies thee with the fat of wheat.” There is no want of wheat, and that ofthe best kind. Compare the notes at Psa_132:15 : “I will satisfy her poor with bread.”

2. Clarke, “He maketh peace - They were now no longer troubled with the Samaritans,Moabites, etc.

3. Gill, “He maketh peace in thy borders,.... Which are usually most infested by enemies, Itmay denote the universality of peace throughout the land, in all the parts and borders of it;and be understood of the outward peace of the church with her enemies, and of theabundance and continuance of it in the latter day; and of that concord and harmony that

shall be among the members of it; and also of that inward spiritual conscience peace eachenjoy through believing; and which is in and from Christ, and flows from his blood andrighteousness, applied for pardon and justification; and is another reason for praising theLord;

and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat; or, "fat of the wheat" (s); the best of it; seeDeu_32:14; which is the choicest of grain, and makes the best of bread, and especially thefinest flour of it; and to be filled and satisfied with this, or to have enough of it, is a greattemporal blessing. Here it may be understood spiritually of the Gospel, which may becompared to wheat, and the finest of it, for its excellency and purity, for its solidity andsubstantiality; with which the chaff of human doctrine is not to be mentioned, Jer_23:28;and for its salutary nourishing and strengthening virtue; and especially of Christ, the sumand substance of it, sometimes compared to a corn of wheat, Joh_12:24; for his superiorexcellency to all others, and the purity of his nature; for his great fruitfulness, and forbeing suitable food to his people; the bread of life, for which he is prepared by hissufferings and death; which may be signified by the beating out of the corn, and grindingthe wheat, and making it into bread, fit for use: and for this spiritual food believers areabundantly thankful, and have reason to praise the Lord.

4. SPURGEO , “He maketh peace in thy borders. Even to the boundaries quiet extends; noenemies are wrangling with the borderers. If there is peace there, we may be sure thatpeace is everywhere. "When a man's ways please the Lord he maketh even his enemies tobe at peace with him." Peace is from the God of peace. Considering the differingconstitutions, conditions, tastes, and opinions of men, it is a work of God when in largechurches unbroken peace is found year after year; and it is an equal wonder if worldlings,instead of persecuting the godly, treat them with marked respect. He who builds Zion isalso her Peace maker, the Lord and Giver of peace. And filleth thee with the finest of the

wheat. Peace is attended with plenty,—plenty of the best food, and of the best sort of thatfood. It is a great reason for thanksgiving when men's wants are so supplied that they arefilled: it takes much to fill some men: perhaps none ever are filled but the inhabitants ofZion; and they are only to be filled by the Lord himself. Gospel truth is the finest of thewheat, and those are indeed blessed who are content to be filled therewith, and are nothungering after the husks of the world. Let those who are filled with heavenly food fill theirmouths with heavenly praise.

5. Treasury of David, “Verse 14. He maketh peace in thy borders, etc. There is a politicalpeace—peace in city and country; this is the fairest flower of a Prince's crown; peace is thebest blessing of a nation. It is well with bees when there is a noise; but it is best withChristians when, as in the building of the Temple, there is no noise of hammer heard. Peacebrings plenty along with it; how many miles would some go on pilgrimage to purchase thispeace! Therefore the Greeks made Peace to be the nurse of Pluto, the God of wealth.Political plants thrive best in the sunshine of peace. "He maketh peace in thy borders, and

filleth thee with the finest of the wheat." The ancients made the harp the emblem of peace:how sweet would the sounding of this harp be after the roaring of the cannon! All shouldstudy to promote this political peace. The godly man, when he dies, "enters into peace" (Isa

57:2); but while he lives, peace must enter into him.—Thomas Watson.

Verse 14. He maketh peace. The Hebrews observe that all the letters in the name of God areliterae quiescentes, letters of rest. God only is the centre where the soul may find rest: Godonly can speak peace to the conscience.—John Stoughton, —1639.

Verse 14. Finest of the wheat. If men give much it is in cheap and coarse commodity.Quantity and quality are only possible with human production in in verse ratio; but theLord gives the most and best of all supplies to his pensioners. How truly the believer underthe gospel knows the inner spirit of the meaning here! The Lord Jesus Christ says, "Mypeace I give unto you." And when he sets us at rest and all is reconciliation and peace, thenhe feeds us with himself—his body, the finest wheat, and his blood, the richest wine.—Johannes Paulus Palanterius.

6. Henry, “For his distinguishing favour to Israel, in giving them his word and ordinances,a much more valuable blessing than their peace and plenty (Psa_147:14), as much as thesoul is more excellent than the body. Jacob and Israel had God's statutes and judgmentsamong them. They were under his peculiar government; the municipal laws of their nationwere of his framing and enacting, and their constitution was a theocracy. They had thebenefit of divine revelation; the great things of God's law were written to them. They had apriesthood of divine institution for all things pertaining to God, and prophets for allextraordinary occasions. o people besides went upon sure grounds in their religion. owthis was, 1. A preventing mercy. They did not find out God's statutes and judgments ofthemselves, but God showed his word unto Jacob, and by that word he made known to themhis statutes and judgments. It is a great mercy to any people to have the word of God amongthem; for faith comes by hearing and reading that word, that faith without which it isimpossible to please God. 2. A distinguishing mercy, and upon that account the moreobliging: “He hath not dealt so with every nation, not with any nation; and, as for his

judgments, they have not known them, nor are likely to know them till the Messiah shallcome and take down the partition-wall between Jew and Gentile, that the gospel may bepreached to every creature.” Other nations had plenty of outward good things; somenations were very rich, others had pompous powerful princes and polite literature, butnone were blessed with God's statutes and judgments as Israel were. Let Israel thereforepraise the Lord in the observance of these statutes. Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest

thyself to us, and not to the world! Even so, Father, because it seemed good in thy eyes.

15. He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.

1. Barnes, “He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth - That is, with reference to theproductions of the earth; to the changes which occur; to the seasons; to snow, frost, ice,cold, heat, wind; and he is universally and immediately obeyed. ature everywhere yields aready acquiescence to his will.

His word runneth very swiftly - As if it hastened to obey him. There is no delay. Comparethe notes at Psa_33:9 : “He spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.”Snow, and frost, and ice, and cold, and heat, and wind, are entirely obedient to him. Thereis no reluctance in obeying him; there is no delay.

2. Clarke, “He sendeth forth has commandment - His substantial word. It is herepersonified, מימרא meymra, Chaldee; and appears to be a very active agent running everywhere, and performing the purposes of his will.

3. Gill, “He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth,.... Which Kimchi interprets ofrain, which causes the wheat to grow; since afterwards mention is made of snow, and ofhoar frost and ice. Aben Ezra understands it of the decree of God, which he executes onearth. The Targum, of the "Memra", or Word of the Lord; the essential Word, theMessiah; whom the Lord sent on earth to perform the great work of redemption andsalvation; and who came speedily, and tarried not when the fulness of time was come, asfollows. It may design God's word of providence, which answers to his word of power inthe first creation of all things; and which orders everything done in the earth, and isinstantly obeyed; which agrees with Psa_147:18. Or rather the word of the Gospel; thedoctrines and ordinances of divine revelation, agreeably to Psa_147:19; and so may haverespect to the mission of the apostles of Christ, and ministers of the word, to go into all theearth, and preach the Gospel to every creature;

his word runneth very swiftly; so the Gospel did in the first times of it, like lightning, fromone end of the heaven to the other; the words of it went into all the world, and the sound ofit unto the ends of the earth; it had a free course, and was glorified: and so it will in thelatter day, when many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased; seeRom_10:18.

4. Henry, “ In general, whatever alterations there are in this lower world (and it is thatworld that is subject to continual changes) they are produced by the will, and power, andprovidence of God (Psa_147:15): He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth, as one thathas an incontestable authority to give orders, and innumerable attendants ready to carryhis orders and put them in execution. As the world was at first made, so it is still upheldand governed, by a word of almighty power. God speaks and it is done, for all are hisservants. That word takes effect, not only surely, but speedily. His word runneth very

swiftly, for nothing can oppose or retard it. As the lightning, which passes through the airin an instant, such is the word of God's providence, and such the word of his grace, when itis sent forth with commission, Luk_17:24. Angels, who carry his word and fulfil it, flyswiftly, Dan_9:21.

2. In particular, frosts and thaws are both of them wonderful changes, and in both we

must acknowledge the word of his power.

(1.) Frosts are from God. With him are the treasures of the snow and the hail (Job_38:22,Job_38:23), and out of these treasures he draws as he pleases. [1.] He giveth snow like wool.

It is compared to wool for its whiteness (Isa_1:18), and its softness; it falls silently, andmakes no more noise than the fall of a lock of wool; it covers the earth, and keeps it warmlike a fleece of wool, and so promotes its fruitfulness. See how God can work by contraries,and bring meat out of the eater, can warm the earth with cold snow. [2.] He scatters the

hoar-frost, which is dew congealed, as the snow and hail are rain congealed. This looks likeashes scattered upon the grass, and is sometimes prejudicial to the products of the earthand blasts them as if it were hot ashes, Psa_78:47. [3.] He casts forth his ice like morsels,

which may be understood either of large hail-stones, which are as ice in the air, or of the icewhich covers the face of the waters, and when it is broken, though naturally it was as dropsof drink, it is as morsels of meat, or crusts of bread. [4.] When we see the frost, and snow,and ice, we feel it in the air: Who can stand before his cold? The beasts cannot; they retireinto dens (Job_37:8); they are easily conquered then, 2Sa_23:20. Men cannot, but areforced to protect themselves by fires, or furs, or both, and all little enough where and whenthe cold is in extremity. We see not the causes when we feel the effects; and therefore wemust call it his cold; it is of his sending, and therefore we must bear it patiently, and bethankful for warm houses, and clothes, and beds, to relieve us against the rigour of theseason, and must give him the glory of his wisdom and sovereignty, his power andfaithfulness, which shall not cease any more than summer, Gen_8:22. And let us also inferfrom it, If we cannot stand before the cold of his frosts, how can we stand before the heat ofhis wrath?

6. Calvin, “While he sends forth, etc. He again touches upon some instances of the operationof God, everywhere to be seen in the system of nature. And as the changes which take placein the air, and upon the earth, and which should be considered evidences of his power, mayperhaps be regarded by the world as the effect of chance, the Psalmist, before proceedingto speak of the snow, hoar frost, and ice, expressly declares, that earth is governed by hispower and control. The sending forth of his word is nothing else than the secret influence bywhich he regulates and governs all things, for without his orders and appointment nomovement could take place among the elements, nor could they be borne, now one way andnow another, upon their own spontaneous impulse without his foregoing secret decree. Hesays, that his word runneth quickly, because, when once God has intimated his will, allthings concur to carry it into effect. If we do not hold fast by this principle, however acutelywe may investigate second causes, all our perspicacity will come to nothing. It is thus thatAristotle, for example, has shown such ingenuity upon the subject of meteors, that hediscusses their natural causes most exactly, while he omits the main point of all, uponwhich the merest child, at least having any religion, has the superiority over him. He musthave little discernment who, in the sudden snows and hoar-frosts, does not perceive howquickly the word of God runs. If, then, we would avoid a senseless natural philosophy, wemust always start with this principle, that everything in nature depends upon the will ofGod, and that the whole course of nature is only the prompt carrying into effect of hisorders. When the waters congeal, when the hail spreads through the air, and hoar frostsdarken the sky, surely we have proof how effectual his word is. But if all these wondersproduce no effect upon most men, at least the piercing cold which benumbs our bodies,

should force us to recognize the power of God. When the heat of the sun scorches us insummer, and again, upon the succession of winter, all things are bound up, such a changeas this, which must have appeared incredible had we not been accustomed to it, cries outloudly that there is a being who reigns above.

7. Treasury of David, “Verse 15. He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth. Hismessages fly throughout his dominions: upon earth his warrants are executed as well as inheaven. From his church his word goes forth; from Zion he missions the nations with theword of life. His word runneth very swiftly: his purposes of love are speedily accomplished.Oriental monarchs laboured hard to establish rapid postal communication; the desire, will,and command of the Lord flash in an instant from pole to pole, yea, from heaven to earth.We who dwell in the centre of the Lord's dominions may exceedingly rejoice that to theutmost extremity of the realm the divine commandment speeds with sure result, and is nothindered by distance or time. The Lord can deliver his people right speedily, or send themsupplies immediately from his courts above. God's commands in nature and providence arefiats against which no opposition is ever raised; say, rather, to effect which all things rushonward with alacrity. The expressions in the text are so distinctly in the present that theyare meant to teach us the present mission and efficiency of the word of the Lord, and thusto prompt us to present praise.

Verse 15. His word runneth very swiftly. There is not a moment between the shooting out ofthe arrow and the fastening of it in the mark; both are done in the very same atom andpoint of time. Therefore we read in the Scripture of the immediate effects of the word ofChrist. Saith he to the leprous man; "Be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy wascleansed": Mt 8:3. And to the blind man, "Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole.And immediately he received his sight"; Mr 10:52. o arrow makes so immediate animpression in the mark aimed at as the arrow of Christ's word. o sooner doth Christ sayto the soul, Be enlightened, be quickened, be comforted, but the work is done.—Ralph

Robinson.

16. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.

1. Barnes, “He giveth snow like wool - He covers the earth with snow, so that it seems tohave a clothing of wool. Compare the notes at Job_37:6 : “For he saith to the snow, Be thouon the earth.”

He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes - As if ashes were strewed over the earth; or, aseasily as one strews ashes.

2. Clarke, “He giveth snow like wool - Falling down in large flakes; and in this statenothing in nature has a nearer resemblance to fine white wool.

Scattereth the hoar frost like ashes - Spreading it over the whole face of nature.

3. Gill, “He giveth snow like wool,.... For colour as white as wool; so the Targum andKimchi: and for the manner of its falling, lightly and gently as a lock of wool; which for itsthinness and fineness it also resembles. Hence the ancients used to call snow εριωδες υδωρ,"woolly water" (t); and Martial (u) gives it the name of "densum veilus aquarum", "athick fleece of waters": so another poet (w) calls clouds flying fleeces of wool, to which theysometimes seem like; Pliny (x) calls it the from of the celestial waters. And it is like wool forits usefulness to the earth; for as wool covers the sheep, and clothes made of it cover men,and keep them warm; so snow filling upon the earth covers it and keeps it warm, andsecures the wheat and other fruits of the earth from the injuries of the cold: and this liesamong the treasures of the Lord, and he brings it out from thence, and commands it to beon the earth; and it is an useful gift of his providence, for which his name is to be praised;see Job_37:6. The Jews have a saying, as Arama observes, that one day of snow is betterthan five of rain. In the third year of Valens and Valentinianus, with the Atrebates (apeople in the etherlands), real wool fell from the clouds, mixed with rain (y). Severalblessings of grace are signified by this figure; as pardon of sin, the justifying righteousnessof Christ, and the efficacy of the word of God, Psa_51:7;

he scattereth the hoar frost like ashes; which is the dew congealed by the intense cold of theair in the night season (z): this for its colour looks like ashes, and for its infinite number ofparticles may be compared to them; which are spread here and there, and everywhere;over gardens, fields, lands, herbs, plants, and trees, as if they were strewed with ashes. Andto hot ashes it may be compared, because of its burning nature, shrivelling up leaves, herbs,and plants, as if burnt; hence called "pruina" in the Latin tongue (a). The manna iscompared to this for its smallness, Exo_16:14; which was typical of Christ, the hiddenmanna, and of the ministry of the Gospel; little, mean, and contemptible, in the eyes ofcarnal men; torturing and tormenting to them, as the fire that came out of the mouths ofthe witnesses; and is the savour of death unto death to some, while it ii the savour of lifeunto life to others.

4. SPURGEO , “Here follow instances of the power of God upon the elements. He giveth

snow like wool. As a gift he scatters the snow, which falls in flakes like fleecy wool. Snowfalls softly, covers universally, and clothes warmly, even as wool covers the sheep. The mostevident resemblance lies in the whiteness of the two substances; but many other likenessesare to be seen by the observant eye. It is wise to see God in winter and in distress as well asin summer and prosperity. He who one day feeds us with the finest of the wheat, at anothertime robes us in snow: he is the same God in each case, and each form of his operationbestows a gift on men. He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes. Here again the Psalmist seesGod directly and personally at work. As ashes powder the earth when men are burning upthe rank herbage; and as when men cast ashes into the air they cause a singular sort ofwhiteness in the places where they fall, so also does the frost. The country people talk of ablack frost and a white frost, and the same thing may be said of ashes, for they are bothblack and white. Moreover, excessive cold burns as effectually as great heat, and hencethere is an inner as well as an outer likeness between hoarfrost and ashes. Let us praise theLord who condescends to wing each flake of snow and scatter each particle of rime. Ours isno absent or inactive deity: he worketh all things, and is everywhere at home.

5. Even in this hot land they knew of cold, ice and snow. They have real winters in Israel.It is a paradox but the cold snow is like a warm blanket that protects that which grows onthe earth.

6. FRA CES WILE

All beautiful the march of days, as seasons come and go;The Hand that shaped the rose hath wrought the crystal of the snow;Hath sent the hoary frost of Heav’n, the flowing waters sealed,And laid a silent loveliness on hill and wood and field.

O’er white expanses sparkling pure the radiant morns unfold;The solemn splendors of the night burn brighter than the cold;Life mounts in every throbbing vein, love deepens round the hearth,And clearer sounds the angel hymn, “Good will to men on earth.”

O Thou from Whose unfathomed law the year in beauty flows,Thyself the vision passing by in crystal and in rose,Day unto day doth utter speech, and night to night proclaim,In ever changing words of light, the wonder of Thy ame.

7. SAMUEL LO GFELLOW

’Tis winter now; the fallen snowHas left the heav’ns all coldly clear;Through leafless boughs the sharp winds blow,And all the earth lies dead and drear.

And yet God’s love is not withdrawn;

His life within the keen air breathes;His beauty paints the crimson dawn,And clothes the boughs with glittering wreaths.

And though abroad the sharp winds blow,And skies are chill, and frosts are keen,Home closer draws her circle now,And warmer glows her light within.

O God! Who giv’st the winter’s coldAs well as summer’s joyous rays,Us warmly in Thy love enfold,And keep us through life’s wintry days.

8. Spurgeon, “The ancients use to call snow woolly water. LOOKI G out of our windowone morning we saw the earth robed in a white mantle; for in a few short hours the earthhad been covered to a considerable depth with snow. We looked out again in a few hoursand saw the fields as green as ever, and the ploughed fields as bare as if no single flake hadfallen. It is no uncommon thing for a heavy fall of snow to be followed by a rapid thaw.These interesting changes are wrought by God, not only with a purpose toward theoutward world, but with some design toward the spiritual realm. God is always a teacher.In every action that he performs he is instructing his own children, and opening up to themthe road to inner mysteries. Happy are those who find food for their heaven-born spirits, aswell as for their mental powers, in the works of the Lord's hand.I shall ask your attention, first, to the operations of nature spoken of in the text; and,secondly, to those operations of grace of which they are the most fitting symbols.

I. Consider first, THE OPERATIO S OF ATURE. We shall not think a few minuteswasted if we call your attention to the hand of God in frost and thaw, even upon naturalgrounds.1. Observe the directness of the Lord's work. I rejoice, as I read these words, to find howpresent our God is in the world. It is not written, "the laws of nature produce snow," but"HE giveth snow," as if every flake came directly from the palm of his hand. We are nottold that certain natural regulations form moisture into hoarfrost; no, but as Moses tookashes of the furnace and scattered them upon Egypt, so it is said of the Lord "HE scattereth

the hoarfrost like ashes." It is not said that the Eternal has set the world going, and by theoperation of its machinery ice is produced. Oh no, but every single granule of icedescending in the hail is from God; "HE casteth forth his ice like morsels." Even as theslinger distinctly sends the stone out of his sling, so the path of every hailstone is marked bythe Divine power. The ice is called, you observe, his ice; and in the next sentence we read ofhis cold. These words make nature strangely magnificent. When we look upon everyhailstone as God's hail, and upon every fragment of ice as his ice, how precious the waterydiamonds become! When we feel the cold nipping our limbs and penetrating through everygarment, it consoles us to remember that it is his cold. When the thaw comes, see how thetext speaks of it;—"he sendeth out his word." He does not leave it to certain forces ofnature, but like a king, "He sendeth out his word and melteth them; he causeth HIS wind to

blow." He has a special property in every wind: whether it comes from the north to freeze,or from the south to melt, it is his wind. Behold how in God's temple everything speaketh ofhis glory. Learn to see the Lord in all scenes of the visible universe, for truly he worketh allthings.This thought of the directness of the Divine operations must be carried into providence. Itwill greatly comfort you if you can see God's hand in your losses and crosses; surely youwill not murmur against the direct agency of your God. This will put an extraordinarysweetness into daily mercies, and make the comforts of life more comfortable still, because,they are from a Father's hand. If your table be scantily furnished it shall suffice for yourcontented heart, when you know that your Father spread it for you in wisdom and love.This shall bless your bread and your water; this shall make the bare walls of an ill-furnished room as resplendent as a palace, and turn a hard bed into a couch of down;—myFather doth it all. We see his smile of love even when others see nothing but the black handof Death smiting our best beloved. We see a Father's hand when the pestilence lays ourcattle dead upon the plain. We see God at work in mercy when we ourselves are stretchedupon the bed of languishing. It is ever our Father's act and deed. Do not let us get beyondthis; but rather let us enlarge our view of this truth, and remember that this is true of thelittle as well as of the great. Let the lines of a true poet strike you:—

"If pestilence stalk through the land, ye say the Lord hath done it—Hath he not done it when an aphis creepeth upon the rosebud?

If an avalanche tumbles from its Alp, ye tremble at the will of Providence—Is not that will as much concerned when the sere leaves fall from the poplar?"

Let your hearts sing of everything, Jehovah-Shammah, the Lord is there.2. ext, I beg you to observe, with thanksgiving, the ease of Divine working. These versesread as if the making of frost and snow were the simplest matter in all the world. A manputs his hand into a wool-pack and throws out the wool; God giveth snow as easily as that:"He giveth snow like wool." A man takes up a handful of ashes, and throws them into theair, so that they fall around: "He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes." Rime and snow aremarvels of nature: those who have observed the extraordinary beauty of the ice-crystalshave been enraptured, and yet they are like morsels"—just as easily as we cast crumbs ofbread outside the window to the robins during wintry days. When the rivers are hardfrozen, and the earth is held in iron chains, then the melting of the whole—how is thatdone? ot by kindling innumerable fires, nor by sending electric shocks from hugebatteries through the interior of the earth—no; "He sendeth forth his word, and melteththem; he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow." The whole matter is accomplishedwith a word and a breath. If you and I had any great thing to do, what puffing and panting,what straining and tugging there would be: even the great engineers, who perform marvelsby machinery, make much noise and stir about it. It is not so with the Almighty One. Ourglobe spins round in four-and-twenty hours, and yet it does not make so much noise as ahumming-top; and yonder ponderous worlds rolling in space track their way in silence. If Ienter a factory I hear a deafening dropping over a wheel, there is a never-ceasing click-clack, or an undying hum; but God's great wheels revolve without noise or friction: divinemachinery works smoothly. This case is seen in providence as well as in nature. Yourheavenly Father is as able to deliver you as he is to melt the snow, and he will deliver you inas simple a manner if you rest upon him. He openeth his hand, and supplies the want of

every living thing as readily as he works in nature. Mark the ease of God's working,—hedoes but open his hand.3. otice in the next place the variety of the Divine operations in nature. When the Lord isat work with frost as his tool he creates snow, a wonderful production, every crystal being amarvel of art; but then he is not content with snow—from the same water he makesanother form of beauty which we call hoarfrost, and yet a third lustrous sparklingsubstance, namely glittering ice; and all these by the one agency of cold. What a marvellousvariety the educated eye can detect in the several forms of frozen water! The same Godwho solidified the flood with cold soon melts it with warmth; but even in thaw there is nomonotony of manner: at one time the joyous streams rush with such impetuosity from theirimprisonment that rivers are swollen and floods cover the plain; at another time by slowdegrees, in scanty driblets, the drops regain their freedom. The same variety is seen inevery department of nature. So in providence the Lord has a thousand forms of frostytrials with which to try his people, and he has ten thousand beams of mercy with which tocheer and comfort them. He can afflict you with the snow trial, or with the hoarfrost trial,or with the ice-trial if he will; and anon he can with his word relax the bonds of adversity,and that in countless ways. Whereas men are tied to two or three methods in accomplishingtheir will, God is infinite in understanding, and worketh as he wills by ways unguessed ofmortal mind.4. I shall ask you also to consider the works of God in nature in their swiftness. It wasthought a wonderful thing in the days of Ahasuerus that letters were sent by post uponswift dromedaries. In our country we thought we had arrived at the age of miracles whenthe axles of our cars glowed with speed, and now that the telegraph is at work we stretchout our hands into infinity: but what is our rapidity compared with that of God'soperations? Well does the text say, "He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth: hisword runneth very swiftly." Forth went the word, "Open the treasures of snow," and theflakes descended in innumerable multitudes; and then it was said, "Let them be closed,"and not another snow-feather was seen. Then spake the Master, "Let the south wind blowand the snow he melted": lo, it disappeared at the voice of his word. Believer, you cannottell how soon God may come to your help. "He rode upon a cherub and did fly," saysDavid; "yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind." He will come from above to rescue hisbeloved. He will rend the heavens and come down; with such speed will he descend, that hewill not stay to draw the curtains of heaven, but he will rend them in his haste, and makethe mountains to flow down at his feet, that he may deliver those who cry unto him in thehour of trouble. That mighty God who can melt the ice so speedily can take to himself thesame eagle wings, and haste to your deliverance. Arise, O God! And let thy children behelped, and that right early.5. One other thought: consider the goodness of God in all the operations of nature andprovidence. Think of that goodness negatively. "Who can stand before his cold?" Youcannot help thinking of the poor in a hard winter—only a hard heart can forget them whenyou see the snow lying deep. But suppose that snow continued to fall! What is there tohinder it? The same God who sends us snow for one day could do the like for fifty days ifhe pleased. Why not? And when the frost pinches us so severely, why should it not becontinued month after month? We can only thank the goodness which does not send "Hiscold" to such an extent that our spirits expire. Travellers towards the orth Pole trembleas they think of this question, "Who can stand before his cold?" For cold has a degree of

omnipotence in it when God is pleased to let it loose. Let us thank God for the restrainingmercy by which he holds the cold in check.

ot only negatively, but positively there is mercy in the snow. Is not that a suggestivemetaphor? "He giveth snow like wool." The snow is said to warm the earth; it protectsthose little plants which have just begun to peep above ground, and might otherwise befrost-bitten: as with a garment of down the snow protects them from the extreme severityof cold. Hence Watts sings, in his version of the hundred-and-forty-seventh Psalm,—

"His flakes of snow like wool he send,And thus the springing corn defends."

It was an idea of the ancients that snow warmed the heart of the soil, and gave it fertility,and therefore they praised God for it. Certainly there is much mercy in the frost, forpestilence might run a far longer race if it were not that the frost cries to it. "Hetherto shaltthou come, but no farther." oxious insects would multiply until they devoured theprecious fruits of the earth, if sharp nights did not destroy millions of them, so that thesepests are swept from off the earth. Though man may think himself a loser by the cold, he isa great ultimate gainer by the decree of Providence which ordains winter. The quaintsaying of one of the old writers that "snow is wool, and frost is fire, and ice is bread, andrain is drink," is true, though it sounds like a paradox. There is no doubt that frost inbreaking up the soil promotes fruitfulness, and so the ice becomes bread. Thus thoseagencies, which for the moment deprive our workers of their means of sustenance, are themeans by which God supplies every living thing. Mark, then, God's goodness as clearly inthe snow and frost as in the thaw which clears the winter's work away.Christian, remember the goodness of God in the frost of adversity. Rest assured that whenGod is pleased to send out the biting winds of affliction he is in them, and he is always love,as much love in sorrow as when he breathes upon you the soft south wind of joy. See thelovingkindness of God in every work of his hand! Praise him—he maketh summer andwinter—let your song go round the year! Praise him—he giveth day and sendeth night—thank him at all hours! Cast not away your confidence, it hath great recompense of reward.As David wove the snow, and rain, and stormy wind into a song, even so combine yourtrials, your tribulations, your difficulties and adversities into a sweet psalm of praise, andsay perpetually—

"Let us, with a gladsome mind,Praise the Lord, for he is kind."

Thus much upon the operations of nature. It is a very tempting theme, but other fieldsinvite me.II. I would address you very earnestly and solemnly upon THOSE OPERATIO S OFGRACE, OF WHICH FROST A D THAW ARE THE OUTWARD SYMBOLS.There is a period with God's own people when he comes to deal with them by the frost of

the law. The law is to the soul as the cutting north wind. Faith can see love in it, but thecarnal eye of sense cannot. It is a cold, terrible, comfortless blast. To be exposed to the fullforce of the law of God would be to be frost-bitten with everlasting destruction; and even tofeel it for a season would congeal the marrow of one's bones, and make one's whole beingstiff with affright. "Who can stand before his cold?" When the law comes forth thundering

from its treasuries, who can stand before it? The effect of law-work upon the soul is to bindup the rivers of human delight. o man can rejoice when the terrors of conscience are uponhim. When the law of God is sweeping through the soul, music and dancing lose their joy,the bowl forgets its power to cheer, and the enchantments of earth are broken. The riversof pleasure freeze to icy despondency. The buds of hope are suddenly nipped, and the soulfinds no comfort. It was satisfied once to grow rich, but rush and canker are now upon allgold and silver. Every promising hope is frost-bitten, and the spirit is winter-bound indespair. This cold makes the sinner feel how ragged his garments are. He could strut about,when it was summer weather, and think his rags right royal robes, but now the cold frostfinds out every rent in his garment, and in the hands of the terrible law he shivers like theleaves upon the aspen. The north wind of judgment searches the man through and through.He did not know what was in him, but now he sees his inward parts to be filled withcorruption and rottenness. These are some of the terrors of the wintry breath of the law.This frost of law and terrors only tends to harden. othing splits the rock or makes the clifftumble like frost when succeeded by thaw, but frost alone makes the earth like a mass ofiron, breaking the ploughshare which would seek to pierce it. A sinner under the influenceof the law of God, apart from the gospel, is hardened by despair, and cries, "There is nohope, and therefore after my lusts will I go. Whereas there is no heaven for me after thislife, I will make a heaven out of this earth; and since hell awaits me, I will at least enjoysuch sweets as sin may afford me here." This is not the fault of the law; the blame lies withthe corrupt heart which is hardened by it; yet, nevertheless, such is its effect.When the Lord has wrought by the frost of the law, he sends the thaw of the gospel. Whenthe south wind blows from the land of promise, bringing precious remembrances of God'sfatherly pity and tender lovingkindness, then straightway the heart begins to soften, and asense of blood-bought pardon speedily dissolves it. The eyes fill with tears, the heart meltsin tenderness, rivers of pleasure flow freely, and buds of hope open in the cheerful air. Aheavenly spring whispers to the flowers that were sleeping in the cold earth; they hear itsvoice, and lift up their heads, for "the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on theearth, the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in ourland." God sendeth his Word, saying, "Thy warfare is accomplished, and thy sin ispardoned;" and when that blessedly cheering word comes with power to the soul, and thesweet breath of the Holy Spirit acts like the warm south wind upon the heart, then thewaters flow, and the mind is filled with holy joy, and light, and liberty.

"The legal wintry state is gone,The frosts are fled, the spring comes on,

The sacred turtle-dove we hearProclaim the new, the joyful year."

Having shown you that there is a parallel between frost and thaw in nature and law andgospel in grace, I would utter the same thoughts concerning grace which I gave youconcerning nature.1. We began with the directness of God's works in nature. ow, beloved friends, remarkthe directness of God's works in grace. When the heart is truly affected by the law of God,when sin is made to appear exceeding sinful, when carnal hopes are frozen to death by thelaw, when the soul is made to feel its barrenness and utter death and ruin—this is thefinger of God. Do not speak of the minister. It was well that he preached earnestly: God has

used him as an instrument, but God worketh all. When the thaw of grace comes, I pray youdiscern the distinct hand of God in every beam of comfort which gladdens the troubledconscience, for it is the Lord alone who bindeth up the broken in heart and healeth all theirwounds. We are far too apt to stop in instrumentalities. Folly makes men look tosacraments for heart-breaking or heart-healing, but sacraments all say, "It is not in us."Some of you look to the preaching of the Word, and look no higher; but all true preacherswill tell you, "It is not in us." Eloquence and earnestness at their highest pitch can neitherbreak nor heal a heart. This is God's work. Ay, and not God's secondary work in the sensein which the philosopher admits that God is in the laws of nature, but God's personal andimmediate work. He putteth forth his own hand when the conscience is humbled, and it isby his own right hand that the conscience is eased and cleansed.I desire that this thought may abide upon your minds, for you will not praise God else, norwill you be sound in doctrine. All departures from sound doctrine on the point ofconversion arise from forgetfulness that it is a divine work from first to last; that thefaintest desire after Christ is as much the work of God as the gift of his dear Son; and thatour whole spiritual history through, from the Alpha to the Omega, the Holy Spirit works inus to will and to do of his own good pleasure. As you have evidently seen the finger of Godin casting forth his ice and in sending thaw, so I pray you recognize the handiwork of Godin giving you a sense of sin, and in bringing you to the Saviour's feet. Join together inheartily praising the wonder-working God, who doeth all things according to the counsel ofhis will.

"Our seeking thy faceWas all of thy grace,

Thy mercy demands and shall have all the praise: o sinner can be

Beforehand with thee,Thy grace is preventing, almighty and free."

2. The second thought upon nature was the ease with which the Lord worked. There was noeffort or disturbance. Transfer that to the work of grace. How easy it is for God to sendlaw-work into the soul. You stubborn sinner, you cannot touch him, and even providencehas failed to awaken him. He is dead—altogether dead in trespasses and sins. But if theglorious Lord will graciously send forth the wind of his Spirit, that will melt him. Theswearing reprobate, whose mouth is blackened with profanity, if the Lord doth but lookupon him and make bare his arm of irresistible grace, shall yet praise God, and bless hisname, and live to his honour. Do not limit the Holy One of Israel. Persecuting Saul becameloving Paul, and why should not that person be saved of whose case you almost despair?Your husband may have many points which make his case difficult, but no case isdesperate with God. Your son may have offended both against heaven and against you, butGod can save the most hardened. The sharpest frost of obstinate sin must yield to the thawof grace. Even huge icebergs of crime must melt in the Gulf-stream of infinite love.Poor sinner, I cannot leave this point without a word to you. Perhaps the Master has sentthe frost to you, and you think it will never end. Let me encourage you to hope, and yetmore, to pray for gracious visitations. Miss Steele's verses will just suit your mournful yethopeful state.

"Stern winter throws his icy chains,

Encircling nature round:How bleak, how comfortless the plains,

Late with gay verdure crown'd!

The sun withdraws his vital beams,And light and warmth depart:

And, drooping lifeless, nature seemsAn emblem of my heart—

My heart, where mental winter reignsIn night's dark mantle clad,Confined in cold, inactive chains;How desolate and sad!

Return, O blissful sun, and bringThy soul-reviving ray;This mental winter shall be spring,This darkness cheerful day."

It is easy for God to deliver you. He says, "I have blotted out like a thick cloud thytransgressions." I stood the other evening looking up at a black cloud which was coveringall the heavens, and I thought it would surely rain; I entered the house, and when I cameout again the sky was all blue—the wind had driven the cloud away. So may it be with yoursoul. It is an easy thing for the Lord to put away sin from repenting sinners. All obstacleswhich hindered our pardon were removed by Jesus when he died upon the tree, and if youbelieve in him you will find that he has cast your sins into the depths of the sea. If thoucanst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.3. The next thought concerning the Lord's work in nature was the variety of it. Frostproduces a sort of trinity in unity—snow, hoarfrost, ice; and when the thaw comes its waysare many. So is it with the work of God in the heart. Conviction comes not alike to all.Some convictions fall as the snow from heaven: you never hear the flakes descend, theyalight so gently one upon the other. There are soft-coming convictions: they are felt, but wecan scarcely tell when we began to feel them. A true work of repentance may be of thegentlest kind. On the other hand, the Lord casteth forth his ice like morsels, the hailstonesrattle against the window, and you think they will surely force their way into the room, andso to many persons convictions come beating down till they remind you of hailstones. Thereis variety. It is as true a frost which produces the noiseless snow as that which brings forththe terrible hail. Why should you want hailstones of terror? Be thankful that God hasvisited you, but do not dictate to him the way of his working.With regard to the gospel thaw. If you may but be pardoned by Jesus, do not stipulate as tothe manner of his grace. Thaw is universal and gradual, but its commencement is notalways discernible. The chains of winter are unloosed by degrees: the surface ice and snowmelt, and by-and-by the warmth permeates the entire mass till every rock of ice gives way.But while thaw is universal and visible in its effects you cannot see the mighty power whichis doing all this. Even so you must not expect to discern the Spirit of God. You will find himgradually operating upon the entire man, enlightening the understanding, freeing the will,delivering the heart from fear, inspiring hope, waking up the whole spirit, gradually and

universally working upon the mind and producing the manifest effects of comfort, andhope, and peace; but you can no more see the Spirit of God than you can see the southwind. The effect of his power is to be felt, and when you feel it, do not marvel if it besomewhat different from what others have experienced. After all, there is a singularlikeness in snow and hoarfrost and ice, and so there is a remarkable sameness in theexperience of all God's children; but still there is a great variety in the inward operations ofdivine grace.4. We must next notice the rapidity of God's works. "His word runneth very swiftly." It didnot take many days to get rid of the last snow. A contractor would take many a day to cartit away, but God sendeth forth his word, and the snow and ice disappear at once. So is itwith the soul: the Lord often works rapidly when he cheers the heart. You may have been along time under the operation of his frosty law, but there is no reason why you should beanother hour under it. If the Spirit enables you to trust in the finished work of Christ, youmay go out of this house rejoicing that every sin is forgiven. Poor soul, do not think that theway from the horrible pit is to climb, step by step, to the top. Oh no; Jesus can set your feetupon a rock ere the clock shall have gone round the dial. He can in an instant bring youfrom death to life, from condemnation to justification. "To-day shalt thou be with me inParadise," was spoken to a dying thief, black and defiled with sin. Only believe in theatoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.5. Our last thought upon the operation of God was his goodness in it all. What a blessingthat God did not send us more law-work than he did! "Who can stand before his cold?"Oh! Beloved, when God has taken away from man natural comfort, and made him feeldivine wrath in his soul, it is an awful thing. Speak of a haunted man; no man need behaunted with a worse ghost than the remembrance of his old sins. The childish tale of thesailor with the old man of the mountain on his back, who pressed him more and moreheavily, is more than realized in the history of the troubled conscience. If one sin do butleap on a man's back, it will sink the sinner through every standing-place that he canpossibly mount upon; he will go down, down, under its weight, till he sinks to the lowestdepths of hell. There is no place where sin can be borne till you get upon the Rock of Ages,and even there the joy is not that you bear it, but that Jesus has borne it all for you. Thespirit would utterly fail before the law, if it had full sway. Thank God, "he stayeth hisrough wind in the day of his east wind." At the same time, how thankful we may be, thatwe ever felt the law-frost in our soul. The folly of self-righteousness is killed by the winterof conviction. We should have been a thousand times more proud, and foolish, and wordly,than we are if it had not been for the sharp frost with which the Lord nipped the growthsof the flesh.But how shall we thank him sufficiently for the thaw of his lovingkindness? How great thechange which his mercy made in us as soon as its beams had reached our soul! Hardnessvanished, cold departed, warmth and love abounded, and the life-floods leaped in theirchannels. The Lord visited us, and we rose from our grave of despair, even as the seedsarise from the earth. As the bulb of the crocus holds up its golden cup to be filled withsunshine, so did our new-born faith open itself to the glory of the Lord. As the primrosepeeps up from the sod to gaze upon the sun, so did our hope look forth for the promise, anddelight itself in the Lord. Thank God that spring-tide has with many of us matured intosummer, and winter has gone never to return. We praise the Lord for this every day of ourlives, and we will praise him when time shall be no more in that sunny land—

"Where everlasting spring abides,And never withering flowers.

A thread-like stream lone dividesThat heavenly land from ours."

Believe in the Lord, ye who shiver in the frost of the law, and the law of love shall soonbring you warm days of joy and peace. So be it. Amen.

9. Treasury of David, “Verse 16. He giveth snow like wool. There are three thingsconsiderable in snow, for which it is compared to wool. First, for the whiteness of it. Snow iswhite as wool; snow is so exceeding white that the whiteness of a soul cleansed bypardoning grace, in the blood of Christ, is likened unto it (Isa 1:18); and the latter part ofthe same verse intimates that the whiteness of snow bears resemblance to that of wool. Thewhiteness of snow is caused by the abundance of air and spirits that are in that pellucidbody, as the naturalists speak. Any thing that is of a watery substance, being frozen ormuch wrought upon by cold, appears more white; and hence it is that all personsinhabiting cold climates or countries, are of a whiter complexion than they who inhabit hot.Secondly, snow is like wool for softness, 'tis pliable to the hand as a lock or fleece of wool.Thirdly, snow is like wool (which may seem strange) with respect to the warmness of it.Though snow be cold in itself, yet it is to the earth as wool, or as a woollen cloth or blanketthat keeps the body warm. Snow is not warm formally, yet it is warm effectively andvirtually; and therefore is it compared to wool.—Joseph Caryl.

Verse 16. Like wool. amely, curled and tufted, and as white as the snow in those countries.Isa 1:18 Re 1:14.—John Diodati.

Verse 16. Snow like wool. The ancients used to call snow eriwdez udwr, woolly water

(Eustathius, in Dionys. Perieget. p. 91). Martial gives it the name of densum vellus

aquarum, a thick fleece of waters (Epigram. l. iv. Ep. 3). Aristophanes calls clouds, "flying

fleeces of wool" ( ubes, p. 146). Pliny calls it the forth of the celestial waters ( at. His. lib.xvii. cap. 2).—Samuel Burder.

Verse 16. He giveth snow like wool. In Palestine snow is not the characteristic feature ofwinter as it is in northern latitudes. It is merely an occasional phenomenon. Showers of itfall now and then in severer seasons on the loftier parts of the land, and whiten for a day ortwo the vineyards and cornfields: but it melts from the green earth as rapidly as its sistervapours vanish from the blue sky...But the Psalmist seized the occasional snow, as he seizedthe fleeting vapour, and made it a text of his spiritual meditations. Let us follow hisexample. "He giveth snow like wool", says the Psalmist. This comparison expresslyindicates one of the most important purposes which the snow serves in the economy ofnature. It covers the earth like a blanket during that period of winter sleep which isnecessary to recruit its exhausted energies, and prepare it for fresh efforts in the spring;and being, like wool, a bad conductor, it conserves the latent heat of the soil, and protectsthe dormant life of plant and animal hid under it from the frosty rigour of the outside air.Winter sown wheat, when defended by this covering, whose under surface seldom fallsmuch below 32 Fahr., can thrive even though the temperature of the air above may be

many degrees below the freezing point. Our country, enjoying an equable climate, seldomrequires this protection; but in northern climates, where the winter is severe andprolonged, its beneficial effects are most marked. The scanty vegetation which blooms withsuch sudden and marvellous loveliness in the height of summer, in the Arctic regions andon mountain summits, would perish utterly were it not for the protection of the snow thatlies on it for three quarters of a year.

But it is not only to Alpine plants and hibernating animals that God gives snow like wool.The Eskimo take advantage of its curious protective property, and ingeniously build theirwinter huts of blocks of hardened snow; thus, strangely enough, by a homoeopathic law,protecting themselves against cold by the effects of cold. The Arctic navigator has beenoften indebted to walls of snow banked up around his ship for the comparative comfort ofhis winter quarters, when the temperature without has fallen so low that even chloric etherbecame solid. And many a precious life has been saved by the timely shelter which the snowstorm itself has provided against its own violence. But while snow thus warms in coldregions, it also cools in warm regions. It sends down from the white summits of equatorialmountains its cool breath to revive and brace the drooping life of lands sweltering under atropic sun; and from its lofty inexhaustible reservoirs it feeds perennial rivers that waterthe plains when all the wells and streams are white and silent in the baking heat. Withoutthe perpetual snow of mountain regions the earth would be reduced to a lifeless desert.

And not only does the Alpine snow thus keep always full rivers that water the plains, but,by its grinding force as it presses down the mountains, it removes particles from the rocks,which are carried off by the rivers and spread over the plains. Such is the origin of a largepart of the level land of Europe. It has been formed out of the ruins of the mountains by theaction of snow. It was by the snow of far off ages that our valleys and lake basins werescooped out, the form of our landscapes sculptured and rounded, and the soil formed inwhich we grow our harvests. Who would think of such a connection? And yet it is true!Just as each season we owe the bloom and brightness of our summer fields to the gloomand blight of winter, so do we owe the present summer beauty of the world to the greatsecular winter of the glacial period. And does not God bring about results as striking byagencies apparently as contradictory in the human world? He who warms the tender latentlife of the flowers by the snow, and moulds the quiet beauty of the summer landscape bythe desolating glacier, makes the cold of adversity to cherish the life of the soul, and toround into spiritual loveliness the harshness and roughness of a carnal, selfish nature.Many a profitable Christian life owes its fairness and fruitfulness to causes which wreckedand wasted it for a time. God giveth snow like wool; and chill and blighting as is the touchof sorrow, it has a protective influence which guards against greater evils; it sculptures thespiritual landscape within into forms of beauty and grace, and deepens and fertilizes thesoil of the heart, so that in it may grow from God's own planting the peaceable fruits ofrighteousness.

And now let us look at the Giver of the snow. "He giveth snow like wool." "Thesnowflake", as Professor Tyndall strikingly says, "leads back to the sun"—so intimatelyrelated are all things to each other in this wonderful universe. It leads further and higherstill—even to him who is our sun and shield, the light and heat of all creation. The wholevast realm of winter, with its strange phenomena, is but the breath of God—the Creative

Word—as it were, congealed against the blue transparency of space, like the marvellousfrost work on a window pane. The Psalmist had not the shadow of a doubt that Godformed and sent the annual miracle of snow, as he had formed and sent the daily miracle ofmanna in the desert. It was a common place thing; it was a natural, ordinary occurrence;but it had the Divine sign upon it, and it showed forth the glory and goodness of God asstrikingly as the most wonderful supernatural event in his nation's history. When Godwould impress Job with a sense of his power, it was not to some of his miraculous, but tosome of his ordinary works that he appealed. And when the Psalmist would praise God forthe preservation of Israel and the restoration of Jerusalem—as he does in the Psalm fromwhich my subject is taken—it is not to the wonderful miraculous events with which thehistory of Israel abounded that he directs attention, but to the common events ofProvidence and the ordinary appearances and processes of nature. He cannot think enoughof the Omnipotent Creator and Ruler of the Universe entering into familiar relations withhis people, and condescending to their humblest wants. It is the same God that "givethsnow like wool", who "shows his word unto Jacob, and his statutes and commandmentsunto Israel." And the wonder of the peculiarity is enhanced by thoughts borrowed from thewonders of nature. We know a thousand times more of the nature, formation, and purposeof the snow than the Psalmist did. But that knowledge is dearly earned if our sciencedestroys our faith. What amount of precision of scientific knowledge can compensate us forthe loss of the spiritual sensibility, which in all the wonders and beauties of the Creationbrings us into personal contact with an infinitely wise mind and an infinitely loving heart?—Hugh Macmillan, in "Two Worlds are Ours," 1880.

Verse 16. Snow. It is worth pausing to think what wonderful work is going on in theatmosphere during the formation and descent of every snow shower; what building poweris brought into play; and how imperfect seem the productions of human minds and handswhen compared with those formed by the blind forces of nature. But who ventures to callthe forces of nature blind? In reality, when we speak thus, we are describing our owncondition. The blindness is ours; and what we really ought to say, and to confess, is that ourpowers are absolutely unable to comprehend either the origin or the end of the operationsof nature.—John Tyndall, in "The Forms of Water," 1872.

Verses 16-17. The Lord takes the ice and frost and cold to be his; it is not only his sun, buthis ice, and his frost: "he scattereth his hoar frost like ashes." The frost is compared toashes in a threefold respect. First, because the hoar frost gives a little interruption to thesight. If you scatter ashes into the air, it darkens the light, so doth the hoar frost. Secondly,the hoary frost is like ashes because near in colour to ashes. Thirdly, 'tis like, because thereis a kind of burning in it: frost burns the tender buds and blossoms, it nips them and driesthem up. The hoar frost hath its denomination in the Latin tongue from burning, and itdiffers but very little from that word which is commonly used in Latin for a coal of fire.The cold frost hath a kind of scorching in it, as well as the hot sun. Unseasonable frosts inthe spring scorch the tender fruits, which bad effect of frost is usually expressed bycarbunculation or blasting.—Joseph Caryl.

17. He hurls down his hail like pebbles.

Who can withstand his icy blast?

1. Barnes, “He casteth forth his ice like morsels - The word rendered morsels meansproperly a bit, a crumb, as of bread, Gen_18:5; Jdg_19:5. The allusion here would seem tobe to hail, which God sends upon the earth as easily as one scatters crumbs of bread fromthe hand.

Who can stand before his cold? - Or, hail. The word is the same, except in pointing, asthe preceding word rendered ice. The idea is that no one can stand before the peltings ofthe hail, when God sends it forth, or scatters it upon the earth.

2. Clarke, “He casteth forth his ice - קרחו korcho, (probably hailstones), like crumbs.Who can stand before his cold? - At particular times the cold in the east is so very intense

as to kill man and beast. Jacobus de Vitriaco, one of the writers in the Gesta Dei perFrancos, says, that in an expedition in which he was engaged against Mount Tabor, on the24th of December, the cold was so intense that many of the poor people, and the beasts ofburden, died by it. And Albertus Aquensis, another of these writers, speaking of the cold inJudea, says, that thirty of the people who attended Baldwin 1: in the mountainous districtsnear the Dead Sea, were killed by it; and that in that expedition they had to contend withhorrible hail and ice, with unheard-of snow and rain. From thls we find that the wintersare often very severe in Judea; and in such cases as the above, we may well call out, “Whocan stand against his cold!”

3. Gill, “He casteth forth his ice like morsels,.... Divided like morsels, as the Targum; cutinto pieces, like morsels of bread. This seems to have respect to hail stones, whichsometimes fall like pieces of ice, and are very prejudicial to the fruits of the earth: this wasone of the ten plagues of Egypt; and whereby also many of the Canaanites were destroyedin the times of Joshua, Exo_9:23; and there is an exceeding great storm of hail yet to come,very dreadful; see Rev_16:21. This is expressive of the wrath, vengeance, and judgments ofGod upon men, by which he is known in various perfections of his nature; as his power,justice, and holiness, for which he is celebrated, Isa_30:30;

who can stand before his cold? which he has purposed and promised shall be; for he hassaid, that "cold and heat shall not cease, as long as the earth remains"; and which heappoints and orders to be, for "by the breath of God frost is given", Gen_8:22; and this issometimes and in some places so very vehement, that it is intolerable; men are obliged tokeep within doors, to make them fires, and put on more clothes; and the "hands" of everyman are sealed up from business; even "the beasts go into their dens, and remain in theirplaces", or get what shelter they can; see Job_37:7. And if there is no standing before hiscold, who can stand before the heat of his anger, or his furious wrath and indignation,when it is poured out like fire? see Psa_76:7.

4. SPURGEO Treasury of David, “Verse 17. He casteth forth his ice like morsels. Such arethe crumbs of hail which he casts forth, or the crusts of ice which he creates upon thewaters. These morsels are his ice, and he casts them abroad. The two expressions indicate avery real presence of God in the phenomena of nature. Who can stand before his cold? onecan resist the utmost rigours of cold any more than they can bear the vehemence of heat.God's withdrawals of light are a darkness that may be felt, and his withdrawals of heat area cold which is absolutely omnipotent. If the Lord, instead of revealing himself as a fire,should adopt the opposite manifestation of cold, he would, in either case, consume usshould he put forth all his power. It is ours to submit to deprivations with patience, seeingthe cold is his cold. That which God sends, whether it be heat or cold, no man can defy withimpunity, but he is happy who bows before it with childlike submission. When we cannotstand before God we will gladly lie at his feet, or nestle under his wings.

Verse 17. He casteth forth his ice like morsels. Or, shivers of bread. It is a worthy saying ofone from this text,—The ice is bread, the rain is drink, the snow is wool, the frost a fire tothe earth, causing it inwardly to glow with heat; teaching us what to do for God's poor.—John Trapp.

Verse 17. He casteth forth his ice like morsels. The word here translated "morsels", means,in most of the places where it occurs in the Bible, pieces of bread, exactly the LXX qwmouv;for this very ice, this wintry cold, is profitable to the earth, to fit it for bearing futureharvests, and thus it matures the morsels of bread which man will yet win from the soil indue season.—Genebrardus, in :eale and Littledale.

Verse 17. Morsels. Or, crumbs. Ge 18:5 Jud 19:5. Doubtless the allusion is to hail.—A.S.

Aglen.

Verse 17. "It is extremely severe", said his sister to Archbishop Leighton one day, speakingof the season. The good man only said in reply, "But thou, O God, hast made summer andwinter."—From J.J. Pearson's Life of Archbishop Leighton, 1830.

18. He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

1. Barnes, “He sendeth out his word - He commands: or, he speaks.And melteth them - Melts the snow and the ice. Compare the notes at Job_37:10-12 : “By

the breath of God frost is given,” etc. The idea is, that they are entirely under his control.They obey him when he speaks.

He causeth his wind to blow - The warm south wind: “his” wind, because he directs it,and causes it to perform his will.

And the waters flow - The snow and the ice melt.

2. Clarke, “He sendeth out his word - He gives a command: the south wind blows; the thawtakes place; and the ice and snow being liquefied, the waters flow, where before they werebound up by the ice.

3. Gill, “He sendeth out his word, and melteth them,.... The snow, the hoar frost, and ice:this he does by a word of his, who can freeze the earth and waters, and thaw them at hispleasure; by ordering the sun to break forth with great heat, or rain to fall in great plenty;of both which Kimchi interprets his word; as well as by causing a warm wind to blow, asfollows,

he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters to flow: the south wind particularly; then thewaters, which were still and motionless, flow as before, or more abundantly. Thus thehearts of men in a state of nature are like frozen earth or waters; they are cold, andwithout the heat of love, and affection to God and Christ, and spiritual things; they are ashard as a stone, and without any motion or desire after things divine and heavenly: butwhen the Lord sends his word, attended with a divine power and efficacy, it breaks andmelts them; when the south wind of the blessed Spirit blows upon them, or his gracebecomes effectual in convincing them of sin, righteousness, and judgment; and when thesun of righteousness arises on them with healing in his wings; with which being warmed,they are loosened, and flow to the Lord and his goodness for all spiritual blessings.

4. Henry, “Thaws are from God. When he pleases (Psa_147:18) he sends out his word and

melts them; the frost, the snow, the ice, are all dissolved quickly, in order to which hecauses the wind, the south wind, to blow, and the waters, which were frozen, flow again asthey did before. We are soon sensible of the change, but we see not the causes of it, butmust resolve it into the will of the First Cause. And in it we must take notice not only of thepower of God, that he can so suddenly, so insensibly, make such a great and universalalteration in the temper of the air and the face of the earth (what cannot he do that doesthis every winter, perhaps often every winter?) but also of the goodness of God. Hardweather does not always continue; it would be sad if it should. He does not contend for ever,

but renews the face of the earth. As he remembered oah, and released him (Gen_8:1), sohe remembers the earth, and his covenant with the earth, Son_2:11, Son_2:12. Thisthawing word may represent the gospel of Christ, and this thawing wind the Spirit ofChrist (for the Spirit is compared to the wind, Joh_3:8); both are sent for the melting offrozen souls. Converting grace, like the thaw, softens the heart that was hard, moistens it,and melts it into tears of repentance; it warms good affections, and makes them to flow,which, before, were chilled and stopped up. The change which the thaw makes is universaland yet gradual; it is very evident, and yet how it is done is unaccountable: such is thechange wrought in the conversion of a soul, when God's word and Spirit are sent to melt itand restore it to itself.

5. SPURGEO Treasury of David,

Verse 18. He sendeth out his word, and melteth them. When the frost is sharpest, and the iceis hardest, the Lord intervenes; and though he doth no more than send his word, yet therocks of ice are dissolved at once, and the huge bergs begin to float into the southern seas.The phenomena of winter are not so abundant in Palestine as with us, yet they arewitnessed sufficiently to cause the devout to bless God for the return of spring. At the willof God snow, hoarfrost, and ice disappear, and the time of the opening bud and the singingof birds has come. For this let us praise the Lord as we sun ourselves amici the springflowers. He causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow. The Lord is the great first cause ofeverything; even the fickle, wandering winds are caused by him. atural laws are inthemselves mere inoperative rules, but the power emanates directly from the Ever presentand Ever potent One. The soft gales from the south, which bring a general thaw, are fromthe Lord, as were those wintry blasts which bound the streams in icy bonds. Simple buteffectual are the methods of Jehovah in the natural world; equally so are those which heemploys in the spiritual kingdom; for the breath of his Holy Spirit breathes upon frozenhearts, and streams of penitence and love gush forth at once. Observe how in these twosentences the word and the wind go together in nature. They attend each other in grace;the gospel and the Holy Spirit cooperate in salvation. The truth which the Spirit breathedinto prophets and apostles he breathes into dead souls, and they are quickened intospiritual life.

Verse 18. He sendeth out his word, and melteth them. Israel in the captivity had beenicebound, like ships of Arctic voyagers in the Polar Sea; but God sent forth the vernalbreeze of his love, and the water flowed, the ice melted, and they were released. God turnedtheir captivity, and, their icy chains being melted by the solar beams of God's mercy, theyflowed in fresh and buoyant streams, like "rivers of the south", shining in the sun. See Ps126:4. So it was on the day of Pentecost. The winter of spiritual captivity was thawed anddissolved by the soft breath of the Holy Ghost, and the earth laughed and bloomed withspring tide flowers of faith, love, and joy.—Christopher Wordsworth.

19. He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel.

1. Barnes, “He showeth his word unto Jacob - Margin, words. His commands; hispromises; his laws. The things which were before adverted to, pertain to the world ingeneral. All people see his works; all enjoy the benefits of his arrangements in the seasons -

in the changes which occur upon the earth; but he has especially favored his own people bygiving them his laws - his revealed will. This distinguishes them above all other nations ofthe earth, and gives them special occasion for gratitude.

His statutes and his judgments unto Israel - His laws; his written word. The wordjudgments here refers to the law of God as being that which he judges or determines to beright.

2. Clarke, “He showeth his word unto Jacob - To no nation of the world beside had Godgiven a revelation of his will.

3. Gill, “He showeth his word unto Jacob,.... From the things of nature and providence, thepsalmist passes to the blessings of grace and goodness; for which the Lord is to be praised,particularly for his word and ordinances. The Targum interprets this of the words of thelaw; and indeed the law, or decalogue, was given only to the Israelites, the posterity ofJacob; as also the ceremonial and judicial laws; and even the whole Scripture, the oraclesof God, were committed to them in a very peculiar manner: all which distinguished themfrom the Gentiles, and gave them the preference to them; see Deu_4:6, Rom_3:1. But theGospel part of the word is also included; the word of grace, peace, reconciliation,righteousness, eternal life, and salvation, which was first published to the Jews: it was"shown" unto them, for it cannot be known by any without a revelation; the Gospel, andthe things of it, are hidden things to natural men, and could never have been discerned byany, had they not been shown by the Lord; as they are externally in the ministration of theword, and internally and effectually by the Spirit of God; who is the Spirit of wisdom andrevelation in the knowledge of divine things;

his statutes and his judgments unto Israel; the ordinances of divine worship under theformer dispensation, which were peculiar to literal Israel; and those of the Gospeldispensation, which belong to the spiritual Israel, Jews and Gentiles; and which are shownand directed to in the word, to be observed by them; and both the Gospel and theordinances of it are instances of divine favour, for which the Lord is to be praised.

4. Jamison, “This mighty ruler and benefactor of heaven and earth is such especially to Hischosen people, to whom alone (Deu_4:32-34) He has made known His will, while othershave been left in darkness. Therefore unite in the great hallelujah.

5. Treasury of David, “Verse 19. He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his

judgments unto Israel. He who is the Creator is also the Revealer. We are to praise the Lordabove all things for his manifesting himself to us as he does not unto the world. Whateverpart of his mind he discloses to us, whether it be a word of instruction, a statute ofdirection, or a judgment of government, we are bound to bless the Lord for it. He whocauses summer to come in the place of winter has also removed the coldness and deathfrom our hearts by the power of his word, and this is abundant cause for singing unto hisname. As Jacob's seed of old were made to know the Lord, even so are we ill these latterdays; wherefore, let his name be magnified among us. By that knowledge Jacob is ennobledinto Israel, and therefore let him who is made a prevailing prince in prayer be also a chief

musician in praise. The elect people were bound to sing hallelujahs to their own God. Whywere they so specially favoured if they did not, above all others, tell forth the glory of theirGod?

Verse 19. Here we see God in compassion bending down, in order to communicate to thedeeply fallen son of man something of a blessed secret, of which, without his specialenlightenment, the eye would never have seen anything, nor the ear ever have heard.—J.J.

Van Oosterzee, on "The Image of Christ."

Verses 19-20. If the publication of the law by the ministry of angels to the Israelites weresuch a privilege that it is reckoned their peculiar treasure—He hath shewed his statutes

unto Israel; he hath not dealt so with any nation—what is the revelation of the gospel by theSon of God himself? For although the law is obscured and defaced since the fall, yet thereare some ingrafted notions of it in human nature; but there is not the least suspicion of thegospel. The law discovers our misery, but the gospel alone shows the way to be deliveredfrom it. If an advantage so great and so precious doth not touch our hearts; and, inpossessing it with joy, if we are not sensible of the engagements the Father of mercies hathlaid upon us; we shall be the most ungrateful wretches in the world.—William Bates.

Verses 19-20. That some should have more means of knowing the Creator, others less, it isall from the mercy and will of God. His church hath a privilege and an advantage aboveother nations in the world; the Jews had this favour above the heathens, and Christiansabove the Jews; and no other reason can be assigned but his eternal love.—Thomas

Manton.

6. Calvin, “He announces his words to Jacob, etc. Here it is another word that is spoken ofthan what was formerly mentioned; for God speaks in a different way to the insensateworks of his hands, which he silently subordinates to his will by secret laws impressed uponthem, than he does to men who are endued with understanding, for these he teaches witharticulate language, that they may obey him intelligently and with consent. Although theblessings formerly mentioned are not to be depreciated, they fall far short of this, that hehas condescended to be the teacher of his chosen people, by communicating to them thatreligious doctrine which is a treasure of everlasting salvation. How little would it avail theChurch that it were filled with the perishing enjoyments of time, and protected from hostileviolence, did not its hope extend beyond this world. This, accordingly, is the grand proof ofhis love, that he has set before us in his word the light of eternal life. On this account it isappropriately mentioned here as the crowning part of true solid happiness. And let us learnfrom this, that we should not only receive the doctrine of God with reverential and holyobedience, but embrace it with affection, for we can conceive of nothing more delightfuland desirable than that God should undertake our salvation, and give testimony of this bystretching out his hand to bring us to himself. For this is the design with which the doctrinehas been given to us, that amidst the thick darkness of this world, and the devious errorsinto which Satan misleads the children of men, the great Father of us all may by it cast aforegoing light upon our path before gathering us to the inheritance of heaven. We are tonotice, that the part which was sustained by Moses and the Prophets according to divineappointment is here ascribed to God himself, for we only put due honor upon the doctrine

of religion, and estimate it at its proper worth when we rise to the consideration of God,who, in using the instrumentality of men, still claims to be considered our chief and onlyteacher. Thus its due majesty is assigned to the word from the person of its author. Again,he enhances the mercy shown by stating a comparison, intimating that this had not been

done for other nations. For if it be asked why God preferred one people to others, this pre-eminence will certainly lead us to gratuitous election as its source, since we will find thatthe children of Israel did not differ from others in any excellency attaching to themselves,but because God passed by others and condescended to adopt them into his favor.

7. We learn from Chardin in a manuscript note on this passage, as quoted by

Harmer in his Observations, that towards the Black Sea, in Iberia and Armenia,

and therefore he imagines in other countries also, "the snow falls in flakes as bigas walnuts; but not being either hard or very compact, it does no other harmthan presently to cover and overwhelm the traveller." The inspired writer hadprobably seen flakes of equal size on the mountains of Judea; and this wouldsuggest to his mind the strikingly appropriate figure, "He giveth his snow likewool."

2 Walford translates, "He casteth down his ice in hail-stones." "The expression, 'like

morsels,'" says he, "is a literal version of the Hebrew, but it gives so imperfect and obscure

a representation of the meaning, as to induce the substitution which is here found. There

can be no doubt but that hail is the thing intended: in this the critics are unanimous. It is

most likely that the Hebrew term, which is translated 'morsels,' means small pieces of some

substance, which we cannot now determine."

3 "The cold is sometimes extremely severe and even mortal in Palestine and the

neighboring countries. Fulchirius Carnotensis, as cited by Mr. Harmer, 'saw the cold prove

deadly to many. Jacobus de Vitriaco informs us, that the same thing happened to many of

the poorer people, engaged in an expedition in which he himself was concerned, against

Mount Tabor: they had suffered severely the preceding days by cold; but on the 24th of

December it was so sharp that many of the poor people, and of the beasts of burden,

actually died. Albertus Acquensis tells us the same thing happened to thirty of the people

that attended King Baldwin I., in the mountainous districts of Arabia by the Dead Sea,

where they had to conflict with horrible hail, with ice, and unheard of snow and rain.'

These citations, as Harmer appositely remarks, may remove our wonder at such passages

as that here commented on, in a hymn composed in those warmer climates." -- Mant.

20 He has done this for no other nation;

they do not know his laws. Praise the LORD.

1. Barnes, “hath not dealt so with any nation - has favored Israel more than any otherpeople by giving them his revealed truth. This was so. There was no nation in the ancientworld so favored as the Hebrew people in this respect. There is no nation now so favored asthe nation that has the revealed will of God - the Bible. The possession of that book gives anation a vast superiority in all respects over all others. In laws, customs, morals,intelligence, social life, purity, charity, prosperity, that book elevates a nation at once, andscatters blessings which can be derived from nothing else. The highest benevolence thatcould be shown to any nation would be to put it in possession of the word of God in thelanguage of the people.

And as for his judgments, they have not known them - Other nations are ignorant of hislaws, his statutes, his revealed will. They are consequently subjected to all the evils whichfrom ignorance of those laws. The fact that the ancient people of God possessed them was asufficient reason for the Hallelujah with which the psalm closes. The fact that we possessthem is a sufficient reason why we should re-echo the shout of praise, and cry Hallelujah.

2. Clarke, “as for his judgments - wondrous ordinances of his law, no nation had knownthem; and consequently, did not know the glorious things in futurity to which theyreferred.

3. Gill, “hath not dealt so with any nation,.... Or "every nation" (b); or all the nationsunder the heavens; only with the Jewish nation: these only for many hundreds of yearswere favoured with the divine revelation, with the word and ordinances of God; with thelaw, and with the Gospel, and with the service and worship of God; as well as withpromises and prophecies of Christ, and good things to come by him. These were notcommunicated to anyone nation or body of people besides them; only now and then, to onehere and there among the Gentiles: the Gospel was first preached to them at the coming ofChrist, and after them to the Gentiles, when rejected by them;

and as for hisjudgments, they have not known them; by which are meant, not theprovidential dispensations of God, which are unsearchable, and past finding out, till mademanifest; nor punishments inflicted on wicked men, unobserved by them; but the word ofGod, and the ordinances of it, which the Gentile world for many ages were unacquaintedwith; see Psa_19:9;

praise ye the Lord: as literal Israel had reason to do, for those distinguishing instances ofhis favour and goodness; and as the spiritual Israel of God everywhere have; andparticularly our British ones, who are highly favoured with the privileges of having theword of God purely and powerfully preached, and his ordinances truly and dulyadministered; at least in some parts of it, and that more than in any other nation under theheavens.

4. Henry, “his distinguishing favour to Israel, in giving them his word and ordinances, amuch more valuable blessing than their peace and plenty (Psa_147:14), as much as the soulis more excellent than the body. Jacob and Israel had God's statutes and judgments amongthem. They were under his peculiar government; the municipal laws of their nation were ofhis framing and enacting, and their constitution was a theocracy. They had the benefit ofdivine revelation; the great things of God's law were written to them. They had apriesthood of divine institution for all things pertaining to God, and prophets for allextraordinary occasions. o people besides went upon sure grounds in their religion. owthis was, 1. A preventing mercy. They did not find out God's statutes and judgments ofthemselves, but God showed his word unto Jacob,and by that word he made known to themhis statutes and judgments.It is a great mercy to any people to have the word of God amongthem; for faith comes by hearingand reading that word, that faith without which it isimpossible to please God. 2. A distinguishing mercy, and upon that account the more : “He

hath not dealt so with every nation,not with anynation; and, as for his judgments, they have

not known them,nor are likely to know them till the Messiah shall come and take down thepartition-wall between Jew and Gentile, that the gospel may be preached to everycreature.” Other nations had plenty of outward good things; some nations were very rich,others had pompous powerful princes and polite literature, but none were blessed withGod's statutes and judgments as Israel were. Let Israeltherefore praise the Lordin theobservance of these statutes. Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself to us, and not to

the world! Even so, Father, because it seemed good in thy eyes.

5. Jamison 19-20, “mighty ruler and benefactor of heaven and earth is such especially toHis chosen people, to whom alone (Deu_4:32-34) He has made known His will, while othershave been left in darkness. Therefore unite in the great hallelujah.

6. Treasury of David, “Verse 20. He hath not dealt so with any nation. Israel had clear andexclusive knowledge of God, while others were left in ignorance. Election is the loudest callfor grateful adoration. And as for his judgments, they have not known them; or, and

judgments they had not known them, as if not knowing the laws of God, they might belooked upon as having no laws at all worth mentioning. The nations were covered withdarkness, and only Israel sat in the light. This was sovereign grace in its fullest noontide ofpower. Praise ye the Lord. When we have mentioned electing, distinguishing love, ourpraise can rise no higher, and therefore we close with one more hallelujah.

Verse 20. He hath not dealt so with any nation... Praise ye the Lord. The sweet Psalmist ofIsrael, a man skilful in praises, doth begin and end this Psalm with Hallelujah. In the bodyof the Psalm he doth set forth the mercy of God, both towards all creatures in general in hiscommon providence, and towards his church in particular. So in this close of the Psalm:"He sheweth his word unto Jacob, and his statutes to Israel. He hath not dealt so with anynation." In the original 'tis, "He hath not dealt so with every nation": that is, with any

nation. In the text you may observe a position and a conclusion. A position; and that is, that

God deals in a singular way of mercy with his people above all other people. And then theconclusion: "Praise ye the Lord." Doctrine. That God deals in a singular way of mercy withhis people, and therefore expects singular praises from his people.—Joseph Alleine (1633-1668), in "A Thanksgiving Sermon."

Verse 20. See the wonderful goodness of God, who besides the light of nature, hascommitted to us the sacred Scriptures. The heathen are enveloped in ignorance. As for his

judgments, they have not known them. They have the oracles of the Sybils, but not thewritings of Moses and the apostles. How many live in the region of death, where the brightstar of Scripture has never appeared! We have the blessed Book of God to resolve all ourdoubts, and to point out a way of life to us. "Lord, how is it thou wilt manifest thyself untous, and not unto the world?" Joh 14:22.—Thomas Watson.

Verse 20. Electing Grace inspires the Heart with Praise.

1. God's love has chosen us. Hallelujah.2. God has intrusted us with his truth. Hallelujah.3. God has made us almoners of his bounty. Hallelujah.4. God through us is to save the world. Hallelujah.—W.B.H.

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