of his countenance, the majestic glory of the Shekinah, and all these displays of power and grace, which flowed from his special favour to them; in which respect it was a figure of the spiritual salvation to the Israel of God.

Ver. 9." And goest not forth with our armies."]-The gospel ministry is a warfare; the preachers of it are good soldiers of Christ under him; their weapons are not carnal, but spiritual: great success attended the word in the first times of the gospel; Christ went forth with his armies conquering and to conquer, and multitudes were subdued by him, and became subjects of him; but in some ages there has been but little success, few have believed the report of the gospel, and been converted by it; Christ's ministers bave laboured in vain, satan's kingdom, though attacked, yet not weakened, nor Christ's kingdom enlarged, but rather all the reverse; antichrist has been suffered to make war with the saints, so to prevail and overcome, and will do so, Rev. xiii. 4, 7. and xi. 7. but it will not be always the case; Christ will go forth with his armies, and make great conquests again, Rev. xi. 15.

Ver. 22. "Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long."-These words are cited by the apostle Paul in Rom. viii. 36. and are applied to his times, shewing the then close attachment of the saints to Christ, and their strong love and affection for him; and they have the same sense here, being an instance and proof of the church's integrity and faithfulness in the cause of God, amidst the sorest afflictions and persecutions.

Ver. 24. "Wherefore hidest thou thy face"]-See Psalm x. 1. and xiii. 1.

"And forgettest our affliction, and our oppression?"]Not that the Lord does really forget either the persons of his people, which he cannot, since they are engraven on the palms of his hands, and a book of remembrance is written for them; nor the afflictions of his people: he knows their souls in adversity, he chooses them in the furnace of affliction; he makes all afflictions work together for good, and delivers out of them. But because deliverance is not immediately wrought, and they sometimes continue long under their afflictions and oppressions, they seem as if forgotten by him.

PSALM XLV.

This psalm contains good news to the spouse of Christ, who had been before under distress, and is an illustrious prophecy of Messiah the prince; it is full of gospel, and points at him only, as a bridegroom espousing the church to himself, and as a king ruling in it, and ruling for it. And it is probable our Saviour has reference to this psalm, when he com pares the kingdom of heaven, more than once, to the solemnity of a royal nuptial, Matt. xxii. 2.-xxv. 1. We have no reason to think it has any reference to Solomon's marriage with Pharaoh's daughter: if I thought it had reference to any other than the mystical marriage between Christ and his church, I would rather apply it to some of David's marriages, because he was a man of war, such a one as the bridegroom here is described to be, which Solomon was not; but I take it to be purely and only meant of Jesus Christ; of him speaketh the prophet this, of him and of no other man; and to him, ver. 6, 7. it is applied in the new testament, Heb. i. 8. nor can it be understood of any other. The preface speaks the excellency of the song, ver. 1. The psalm speaks of the royal bridegroom, who is Christ. (1.) The transcendent excellence of his person, ver. 2. (2.) The glory of his victories, ver. 3-5. (3.) The righteousness of his government, ver. 6, 7. (4.) The splendour of his court, ver. 8, 9. 2. Of the royal bride, which is the church. (1.) Her consent gained, ver. 10, 11. (2) The nuptials solemnized, ver. 12—15. (3.) The issue of this marriage, ver. 16, 17. In singing this psalm, may our hearts be filled with high thoughts of Christ, with an entire submission to, and satisfaction in, his government, and earnest desire of the enlarging his church in the world, and the shinings of his love.

VER. 1. "My heart is inditing a good matter."]That is, something that is superlatively good, good in the highest degree, good to men, good to angels, good to the saints, as it respects Christ in his glory, person, grace, and fulness; in his kingdom, reign, and divine majesty; and the church, his spouse and bride, in her beauty, dignity, honour, and glory. This is set forth under the idea of an epithalamium, or marriage song, therefore fitly called the song of loves, denoting the sweet union, and mutual communion that there is between Christ and his church, as the bridegroom and the bride, and the sweet odours of his name, engaging the virgins, who were the bride's companions, to love him, and worship him as their King. This psalm appears to have been indited or composed under a very great measure of the Holy Spirit, which did spring up, and break forth from the psalmist's heart, for the editi cation of the church in all ages. Hence learn, first, the knowledge of the love of Christ to his church, and of his espousing her, is the sweetest subject, the matter of the most

glad tidings that ever sinners heard of, and worthy indeed to be called a good matter. Secondly, the heart acquainted with this sweet and saving knowledge, will be more ready to communicate what it knoweth, than able to express itself: the heart will be as a spring well, a boiling pot, according to the measure of the Lord's presence in it. Thirdly, the theme of the praises of the believing soul is Christ's person, clothed with offices for the salvation of souls: for the main subject of this song is touching the King. Fourthly, when the heart is full of gracious affection, the tongue will be loosed to praise God, so as that others may be edified: out of the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak; " My tongue (saith he) is the pen of a ready writer."

Ver. 28. "Thou art fairer than the children of men."] This shews that the King, the Messiah, who is the church's beloved, is, in the perfection, beauty, and glory of his person, beyond all comparison: that he is infinitely fair, beautiful, and glorious. The Hebrew word in the original is doubled, Jephi-aphitah, which denotes a double fairness, or a surpassing beauty; for there is no beauty, glory, nor preciousness in men or angels, to be compared to the beauties and perfections of Christ, as man and mediator: but if we think of him as God-man, the glorious man in God, O then, how gloriously beautiful is this bridegroom above all men, angels, or saints! what grace, excellence, and loveliness shine in him! God having adorned him, accomplished him, and blessed him in the most exalted degree, that he is infinitely beyond all comparison in beauty, brightness, perfection, and glory. O who can behold him, and not love him, praise him, and adore him!

"Grace is poured into his lips."]-Which denotes all the blessings of grace and glory being poured out upon him as the head of the church; for Christ, as man, is furnished abundantly and above measure, for communicating of the blessing to his hearers invincibly and infallibly, and for making his doctrine effectually powerful to salvation, to whomsoever he will; for "therefore (or to this purpose) God hath blessed him for ever." Christ is furnished to subdue, and conquer, and bring in as many as he pleases under subjection unto his kingdom: he hath his sword, even the rod of his mouth, his word, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, which no man can withstand. He goeth not to conquer or subdue without this his sword, which is his word; it is always ready to be drawn forth, and to be thrust in the soul and conscience of the hearer with whom

he mindeth to deal: "His sword is girded upon his thigh." Christ is almighty, and so able to make good all that he speaketh, and to make his word of precept, promise, and threatening, effectual unto the errand for which it is sent; "He is most mighty." Where he is pleased to open his word, and to discover himself what he is, they that sit in darkness see a great light of his own glory as God, a shining light, a glorious light, making open the deep counsel of God, and mystery of men's salvation. "Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory." Where he pleaseth to shew himself, there the stateliness of a mighty monarch is seen, the sovereignty of the rule of heaven and earth is seen, able to shake the heart with fear and awe of his greatness; with his glory there is majesty, or stately magnificence. The wheels of Christ's chariot, whereupon he rideth when he goeth to conquer and subdue new converts to his kingdom, are majesty, truth, meekness, righteousness, manifested in the preaching of his gospel: majesty, when the stately magnificence of his person and offices is declared: truth, when the certainty of all that he teacheth in scripture is known: meekness, when his grace and mercy are preached; and righteousness, by faith in his name is clearly set forth. Christ cometh not short of his intent and purpose, but doth the work for which he cometh, preaching the gospel: "In his majesty, truth, meekness, and righte ousness, he rideth prosperously. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people fall under thee." Christ Jesus, the promised Messiah, was re vealed to the church of Israel, to be the very true eternal God, that their faith and our's might have satisfaction, and a solid ground to rest upon, in the all-sufficiency and infinite worthiness of the promised Redeemer, as the apostle, Heb. i. 8. confirmeth unto us, citing to this purpose this very text, "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever." Christ shall not want a church from generation to generation : let persecutors do their worst, he shall reign as King, and sit on his throne in his church, giving forth his laws, and executing them, oppose who will. The scepter of Christ's kingdom, which is the gospel, or the word of God in scrip ture, whereby he gathereth his subjects and ruleth them, and the manner of his governing his people by the rules of his law and discipline, are most just and equitable; it is a righteous scepter, whereby the subjects are instructed in all righteousness, and are justified and made righteous. The

holiness and righteousness of Jesus Christ, both as he is God, and as he is God incarnate, is so essential to his person and employment, that his rule of government and administration of his affairs in his kingdom cannot but be right. As Christ is very God, so is he very man, in all things, except sin, like unto us whom he calleth, Psalm xxii. 22. and Heb. ii. 12. his brethren, and here his fellows, sharers and partakers of all that is given to him, and joint-heirs with him, Rom. viii. 17. and by reason of making covenant in our name with the Father, and by assuming our nature, according to the tenor of the covenant, God becometh his God and our God, and he in our name, as man, receiveth the gifts of the Holy Spirit without measure, for fitting him, as he is man, to manage his kingdom in righte ousness effectually; for it is said, therefore, or to that intent, "God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness." The gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, spoken of here, are so bestowed on believers, joint-heirs with Christ, as Christ is not degraded from his sovereignty by his partners exaltation.

As the attendants of great persons are refreshed by the smell of their ointments and perfumed garments, so are Christ's attendants refreshed with the consolation of Christ's Spirit perfuming all his outward ordinances, wherein as in his garments (that is, his priestly vestments, which were dipped in blood) he doth shew forth himself to his church more comfortably than any perfume or odoriferous spice can set forth: "All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia."

Not only the heavens, where God sheweth forth his glory to the souls of just inen made perfect, but also all the places where his honour dwelleth, all the meetings of his church where he sheweth himself in his ordinances to a spiritual eye, are all of them most glorious and stately palaces; for there is the temple of the Holy Ghost, and there is the beauty of holiness, whence doth come forth the smell of his graces in his ordinances, as out of ivory palaces. It is savoury and well pleasing to Christ when his people find pleasure in him, and are refreshed by his blessing upon the public ordinances; for "thereby they have made thee glad," saith the church to Christ.

Ver. 9. "Upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir."]-By whom is meant the church, whose title is a queen, being the bride, the Lamb's wife: where