For peace fhall like a river flow,

And truth o'er all the earth fhall stream, That all mankind his ways may know, And bow at their Emmanuel's name: His reign of peace shall ever last,

When fun and moon shall cease to fhine; When all the prefent things are past: This King's of God's eternal line! His fubjects too fhall ever fhine, And live in his eternal light; For he's their light and life divine, Who faves them from eternal night. 8 His great and wide dominion fhall Extend from fea to fea abroad, Diffus'd o'er all the earthly ball, Submiffive to his royal nod. 9 The dwellers in the wilderness Shall bow themselves before his face; And all his foes his foot fhall prefs; They lick the duft who fcorn his grace.

10 The kings afar upon the fea,

Shall bring the tribute of their ifles; Sheba, and Seba's kings fhall be Receiv'd by him with pleafant fmiles. 11 All kings upon the earth who reign, Shall reign fubjected to his nod; And all the nations in their train, Shall come and ferve the Lord their God.

12 For he fhall fend falvation foon,

When men diftrefs'd on him shall call; When they shall fee their helpers gone, Their Lord their King fhall help them all. 13 He fhall the poor and needy fpare, And bundle up their fouls in life: Below his wings, no foe fhall dare To move them more with future ftrife.

14 He fhall redeem their fouls from hell,
And from the hand of vi'lence fave;
Their blood, which he efteemeth well,
He fhall deliver from the grave.
15 For he himself fhall ever live,

And they with him fhall live along;
They fhall the gold of Sheba give,
And daily praife him in their fong:
To him, their Sov'reign, they fhall pray,
And he fhall lend a willing ear;
Before they can their wishes fay,
Their wifh'd-for anfwer fhall appear.

16 The joy and plenty of his reign,

17

All men with wond'ring eyes thall fee;
For on bare fcorched mountains then
A grain of corn a sheaf shall be,
The waving harvest on the hills

Shall fhake like trees on Lebanon,
When roving wind the foreft fills,
And fmoothly blows the groves upon.
The city fhall be flourishing,

Her happy citizens abound

In number fhall, and upward fpring,
Like grafs that grows upon the ground.
Endure for ever fhall his name,

And, like the fun, moft glorious fhine;
Men fhall be bleffed in the fame

And glory in their blefs divine:

Bleft! bleft! all nations fhall him call,
For all fhall hear the joyful found,
And lowly at his footstool fall,

Adoring proftrate on the ground.

18 Now, bleffed be, the Lord our God, The God and King of Ifrael, a

Who hath declar'd his works abroad, o
His works in wonder which excel: ersoqol

19 And bleffed be his glorious name,
Whofe glory fills the world amain,
O'erflowing like a mighty ftream.
Amen, for evermore, amen.

PSALM LXXIII.

THE paraphrafe of this Pfalm the reader will perceive to be full and explicit, I trüft, in every particular, exactly fquared according to the parallels, and the analogy of the common faith of God's elect. If that does not fatisfy, the writer has nó more to fay but this only, that, as the Pfalm is all fpoken in one perfon, this interpretation mu bè allowed, or that of feveral of the parallels, fuch as Pfalm xvi. xvii. xxvi. xxxv. xxxvii &c. (which by the New Teftament, I fuppofe, is put beyond all controverfy) muft be rejected.-The structure of the Pfalm is what may be called hypothetical, confifting of a series of conditions, the fuppofing any one whereof to be true, would be to land the argument in a manifeft abfurdity:-a method of reafoning, which is exceedingly common, not only in the Holy Scriptures, but also in all writings and difcourfes whatioever.The objections they bring against the application of this Pfalm, as fpoken in the perfon of the Meffiah, they think unanfwerable; as from ver. 2. But, as for me, my feet

were almost gone; my fteps had well nigh flipt.' But what can be inferred from these words, but that the speaker, in the circumftances supposed and defcribed, was in great anxiety and preffure of fpirit, almoft overwhelmed and overcome by the confideration of the matter in his view? Which is really confirmed and demonstrated by the next words, properly understood; although the tran lators, filled with nothing in their minds but the perfons, fituations, and frailties of the penmen, as appears from their contents of all the Pfalms, as well as of this, have accommodated the turn of

the

the words to the ftate of their fancied fpeaker, and have made him fay, I was envious,' &e! which upon any occafion but the prefent, where they molt deferved, would have been rendered thus, I was moved with zealous indignation,' or, I was exceedingly grieved at the foolish,' &c.t would look very like affectation, and an useless difplay of what the most part of my readers would call pedantry, to endeavour to juftify, by quotations from the critics, this obfervation upon ver. 3. which I fhall leave to every honest and wife heart to confider; and pafs on to ver. 16. When I ⚫ thought to know this, it was too painful for me' -or rather, as the margin tells us, according to the Hebrew reading, It was labour in mine eyes.' Now, what can be understood by this plain Hebrew reading, but that it was painful or grievous to behold? And how remarkably was this fulfilled, when Jefus faw the buyers and fellers in the temple, and in him was fulfilled this saying, The zeal of thine houfe hath caten me up?" John ii. 17.-Ver. 21. explains the whole in plainterms, • Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins. But what fhall be made of the next verfe, So foolish was I, and ignorant;' (Heb. as the margin, I knew not'); I was as

a beaft before thee;' (Heb. marg. with thee')? -Pfal. xcii. 6. is by no means parallel to this, although quoted on the margin. If the paraphrafe of this verfe fhould fail of giving fatisfaction to our bold objectors, I would ask them, what good confiftent fenfe they will put upon these words of the prophet, which the Holy Ghost is witness are fpoken of the Lord Jefus Chrift? Who is blind but my Servant? or deaf as my Meffenger that I fent? Who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the Lord's Servant? Seeing many things, but thou obferveft not; opening the ears, but he heareth not!' Ifa. xlii. 19, 20. He was led as a fheep to the flaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his fhearers, fo opened he not his mouth; 2

T3

Ifa.

2.

Ifa, liii. 7and, • I am a worm, and no man!? Pfal. xxii.—Meaning, in all these passages, the appearances he made in his eftate of humiliation among men, and the estimation wherein he was held of them; as a man of forrows, and acquainted with grief; without form or beauty, in their eyes, why he fhould be defired, &c.

T

YET,

ET, God is good to Ifrael,
For all that comes and goes;

Altho' high lofty billows fwell,

And loud the tempeft blows:

The pure in heart, the fons of faith,
Who fee within the veil,

May joyful hold upon their path,
Though wickednefs prevail.

2 For, as for me, my feet had gone,
My fteps had well-nigh flipt;
...When wordly men in glory fhone,
They had me almoft tript.

3 For when I faw, I burn'd with zeal
Against the foolish men,
Who did by wickedness prevail,
And profper in their reign.

4 They burst the bands of godly fear,

They fcorn the bonds of death,

Their ftrength is firm, their heads they bear as b Aloft till lateft breath.

5 They're,