5 Thy mercy, LORD, is in the heav'ns:
Thy truth doth reach the clouds:
6 Thy justice is like mountains great;
Thy judgments deep as floods:
LORD, thou preservest man and beast.
7 How precious is thy grace!
Therefore in shadow of thy wings

Men's sons their trust shall place.
8 They with the fatness of thy house
Shall be well satisfy'd;"

From rivers of thy pleasures thou
Wilt drink to them provide.

9 Because of life the fountain pure
Remains alone with thee;

bring Jews and Gentiles, as humble penitents, to his feet, to confess their treasonsand rebellions, and swear allegiance. In consequence of this, Messiah, the Church, and indeed all mankind, will sing of mercy and judgment: when the great deep of his judgments will make the new earth like Eden's hallowed garden. In Hebrew it is, the mountains of God, who claim:s as his property the natural and mystical mountains, the cattle en a thousand hills, and the inhabitants of all the kingdoms of the earth Jience he proceeds in the 7th verse to celebrate Jehovah as the preserver of man, indefinitely, and of beast, with a preservation suited to their respective nature, comine) surate to the duration of their existence, and adequate to all their powers and capacities of enjoyment. Ilence his loving-kindness, of the displays and communications of which intelligent beings alone are capable, comes next in order; and it is added, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. Thus we see how truth will engage mercy to accomplish the promised salvation, in its whole extent; and how righteousness, or justice, will employ judgment to perfect the grand design. Here again it is in the Heb. the sons, er children of Adam, and the shadow of his wings, alludes evidently to the cherubinis over the mercy seat; importing that they shall so know his saving name, as to put their trust in him, and be brought under the covert of atoning blood, Thus the recovery of those who do sut rank as the sons of God, and are berce called the sons or children of Adam, is effectually secured. See Dout. xxxii. 11. Mat. xxiii. 13. in confirmation of the view given.

In the Sth verse it is promised that they, namely, the children of Adam last spoken of, shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house: &c. That the ricers of his pleasures, of which he shall make them drink, allude to those of Paradise, is plain; and occur here with great proprie ty, as these promises are to be fulfilled in the new or paradiscal earth, in which righteousness shall dwell.

And in that purest ight of thine
We clearly ight shall see.
10 Thy loving-kindness unto them
Continue that thee know;

And still on men upright in heart
Thy righteousness bestow.

11 Let not the foot of cruel pride
Come, and against me stand;

And let me not removed be,
LORD, by the wicked's hand.

12 There fall'n are they, and ruined,
That work iniquities;

Verse 9. informs us that with God is the fountain of life, and also the water of life flowing from the throne of God, and of the Lamb in the new Jerusalem. Rev. xxii. 1. Ezek. xlvii. 1. While the faithful ean say as here, In thy light we shall see light, as dwelling always in his presence, who is Light itself, will they not rejoice that the nations of the saved shall walk in the light of it, and that the true Jacob's cattle shall drink of his wells after the children?—God, like his emblem the sun, cannot be seen but by the light, which proceeds from himself'; and that will one day become as universal and unbounded as that of the solar orb; whence our Lord is called, The light of the world. In his light may we be blessed in seeing light, and then shall no doctrine of his word prove stumbling.

In verses 10, 11. the Psalmist, as a figure of his Divine Lord, prayeth he would continue these mercies which he had been celebrating, while the oppressions of the wicked, described in the beginning of the psalm, lay still upon him. He so prays however, as to include the faithful in every age. From proud sinners without, and pride within, we need to pray to be kept, as we are here taught. Our Lord gained complete victory over the sons of pride, who could not draw him aside to any by path on earth, nor prevent his ascension to his native throne in heaven; of which David's coronation, and establishment in his kingdom were a type or figure and pledge.

In verse 12th, he foreseeth and perdicts the downfal of his enemies, who were workers of iniquity: they are cast down, and shall not be able to arise; that is, to their former state, and persecuting power, David's enemies were not; and the impenitent Jews, Messiah's enemies, are not to this day. Yet they shall arise in the latter day; but the very reverse of what they were before. In their rising, we anticipate a pledge of the future resurrection of all Christ's enemies. Himself saith, When they arise, let them be ashamed, or they shall be filled with confusion and sorrow for having crucified, and so long persisted in denying and rejecting their King. Ps. cix. 28. Let faith present things that be not as though they were; and the empire of sin fallen, to rise no more; as David expresse

In this bighly instructive psalm of David, the Holy Spirit vindicates the providence of God against the objections urged from the seeming inequality of his dispensations, in afflicting the righteous, and allowing the wicked to prosper. The Psalmist, therefore, tenders advice and consolation to God's people, under all the afflictions and oppressions, which triumphant wickednesss may be permitted to inflict for a season in this world. Under these, faith and patience are recommended; for as the once afflicted, but now glorious Head, rose above these mighty waters; so shall it in due time be with all his faithful followers. The twofold issue of the present state of things is presented to our view under a great variety of expressions, and affecting images; but the psalm being a collection of wise sayings, and not a continued discourse, no short argument can do it justice.

1 FOR evil-doers fret thou not

Thyself unquietly;

'Nor do thou envy bear to those

That work iniquity.

2 For, even like unto the

grass,

Soon be cut down shall they;

himself in this verse. But common systems give this empire and its king an endless existence. The mystical Saul's house shall wax weaker and weaker and the true David's house stronger and stronger, till it finally swallow up and annihilate the former, and reduce the whole universe under one Head, without a rival.

Notes on Psalm XXXVII. Verses 1, 2. Fret not thyself &c. This psalm contains a collection of Divine aphorisms, relating to the conduct of the righteous, and the sure reward that awaits them; and the certain punishment of the wicked, whose conduct is described. Considering the transient enjoyments, and impending fate even of prosperous ungodly nen; the righteous, so far from having cause to fret at their prosperity, or envy them their possessions, should pity them, and daily offer supplications to God in their behalf.

As the scythe of the mower scon cuts down the grass of the meadow, when in its prime; so do they perish from their estates and enjoyments here, and wither as the green herb. In human life the seasons have their course; the bloem of spring gives place to the heat of summer, that to

And, like the green and tender herb,
They wither shall away.

3 Set thou thy trust upon the LORD,
And be thou doing good;

And so thou in the land shalt dwell,
And verily have food.

4 Delight thyself in God; he'll give
Thine heart's desire to thee.

5 Thy way to God commit, him trust,
It bring to pass shall he.

6 And, like unto the light he shall
Thy righteousness display;
And he thy judgment shall bring forth
Like noon-tide of the day.

7 Rest in the LORD, and patiently
Wait for him; do not fret

For him who prosp'ring in his way,

Success in sin doth get.

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blighting autumn, which soon ends in the desolations of winter. unite the whole in the short span of their existence; for many a fair flow. er in the morning of life withers and decays before its noon.

Verse 3. Trust in the LORD, and do good, &c. Perseverance in faith and holiness is the more noble way of attaining to the towering height of the cedar, and the spreading beauty of the palm, that outbrave the storms of life, and the winter of death. The last clause is rendered-Dwell in the land, and feed on truth, or faithfulness.

Verse 4. Delight thyself also in the LORD; &c. Seldom do men of the world attain their desire in the objects of their pursuit, their vain hopes, being ever disappointed; but those who delight in God, and desire what be pleases to bestow, thus obtain what they desire.

Verses 5, 6. Commit thy way unto the LORD; &c. To those who observe the duty here commanded will God fulfil the promises annexed. This was verified in all his faithful people; for though clouds of slander and reproach may for a time obscure their character, and distress their minds; yet the rising of the Sun of righteousness will chase all these away, never to return.

Verse 7. Rest in, or be silent to, or because of the LORD, &c. that is, as appears from the sequel, Repine not, nor murmur at the prosperity of the wicked, though thy own lot should be the yery reverse, as if this argued God's disregard to his people. In such trials it becomes us to be still and know, that he is God, dealing with his people as seemeth him good,

8 Do thou from anger cease, and wrath

See thou forsake also;

Fret not thyself in any wise,

That evil thou should'st do. 9 For those that evil-doers are Shall be cut off and fall:

In verses 8th and 9th, we have a very necessary caution to preserve our minds from every undue emotion under the ill usage of the world. The impending terrible fate of the wicked-to be cut off by God's judgments, and the prospect of those that wait patiently upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth, that new earth in which righteousness shall dwell, are here proposed, as motives to possess our souls in patience under injuries from fellow men. As the righteous cannot be said to inherit the present earth, though heirs of all things, and as their proper inheritance is that of the saints in light; we view the future portion of the rest of mankind, in their restored state, as bestowed upon them in right of their elder brethren the elect, who will possess it in their name in the millennial earth as probably here intended.

Verse 10. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be; &c. As the oracles of truth do not admit of the annihilation of the wicked, as creatures, we must understand this and similar texts as intending, not only their removal from this by death, in which case they would still exist as wicked men, but also the renovation of their nature, by which that character would no longer belong to them. In psalm civ. 35. the like phrase occurs; The sinners shall be consumed out of the earth, and the wicked shall be, or exist no more, as it may be literally rendered.

Verse 11. But the meek shall inherit the earth &c. Our LORD likely had this text in his eye, Mat. v. 5. And can the meek inherit the earth, in so honourable and joyful a sense, as when their younger brethren are put in possession of it by their means, and when both shall delight themselves in the abundance of endless peace? Thus shall Messiah see his children's children, that is, in our view, those that rank not among the firstborn, after the espousals of the church in this state are publicly owned at the celebration of the marriage Supper. Ps. cxxviii. 6.